


The Spring of Genius

by aeowa



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Anal, Anal Sex, Banter, Bottom Byun Baekhyun, Colorado, Drinking, Eventual Smut, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Getting Together, Hand Jobs, In the end, M/M, Nightmares, POV Third Person, Shower Sex, Skinship, Slow Build, Smut, Snow, Snowboarding, Texting, Top Park Chanyeol, Winter, and thru technology, i wanted to include both their dom personalities but, jongdae is mentioned hes not actually there, monster era chanbaek, sehun and jongdae are with them in spirit, sehun is a bad wingman but hes doing his best, ski vacation, slow burn except everything is already on fire
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-18
Updated: 2018-12-21
Packaged: 2019-03-20 13:25:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 39,641
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13718631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aeowa/pseuds/aeowa
Summary: Beaver Creek, the Ritz Carlton, and Byun Baekhyun. What more could Park Chanyeol want for a perfect vacation? However, a week together in Colorado proves more formidable than predicted- Chanyeol can't keep ignoring the flutter of his heart and the twist of his gut every time Baekhyun so much as even smiles at him. Chanyeol hopes that he can figure this all out before he does something stupid, or maybe he'll finally do something right.





	1. Day I

**Author's Note:**

> WOW! okay, this is my first full-length/multiple chapter fic, and it's been a wild ride so far. It took me a lot of courage to get this rolling. Idk, i guess i feel a little embarrassed??? To write about k-idols??? But i would do anything for the Nation's Boyfriends so...  
> Shoutout to my dearest friend Olivia for supporting me and helping me whenever i'm struggling or experiencing a block- u da frying pan.  
> Since this work will have multiple chapters, and i KNOW the pain of reading an unfinished fic without knowing when it will end IF EVER, i plan to update as frequently as possible for me; know that i am a student, so i have many priorities over this work, but it is still important to me that i finish it and am satisfied with it.  
> I discovered that the music i listen to greatly impacts my writing, much like the function of a movie soundtrack impacts the viewing of the film. i've inserted links of songs that i've been listening to that match the tone, so give em a listen!  
> I actually have been to Beaver Creek in Colorado (it's awesome! yall should go if ever possible!!!) but I did not stay at the Ritz Carlton hotel cuz that hella fucknnnn expensivvvvvee like im talkin top 10 most expensive ski resorts in the world  
> As per usual, let me know if there are any technical errors, or if any part caused confusion that should to be cleared up! Please leave a kudos if you like the work, and drop a comment at the bottom!  
> Title adapted from the Pietro Aretino quote: "Let us love winter, for it is the spring of genius." Apparently i share a birthday with Aretino; coincidence? I think not!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me!!  
> tumblr: freak-ofthe-nation  
> twt: @ayeowa

Listen to all tracks  [ here ](https://open.spotify.com/user/g33ry4pb08dhhe2kyrmykmjtg/playlist/2PMQoOT8IPZ8N6Y7uJu0ZX?si=H6tRnURhQKej0uJSIZOdXQ) !

~

“Baekhyun, hey, we’re almost there, wake up.” Chanyeol reached over from the driver’s seat and tapped his friend Baekhyun’s shoulder to wake him up. When Baekhyun did not respond, Chanyeol raised his voice and shook Baekhyun’s shoulder.

“Baekhyun! You gotta wake up! I’m not gonna unpack the car all by myself.”

“Okay, okay, I’m awake. You can stop yelling now,” Baekhyun mumbled sleepily. Chanyeol replaced his hand on the steering wheel and fixed his eyes on the road. He saw Baekhyun out of his peripherals stretch and adjust his black hair in the passenger seat.

“The entrance to the ski resort should be coming up soon, help me look for it,” Chanyeol said.

“What’s it called again?” Baekhyun asked as he put his feet on the dashboard of the car.

“Beaver Creek Mountain Resort. We’re staying at the Ritz Carlton, by the way.”

“Wow, look at us, settin’ up camp in the Ritz? Sweet,” Baekhyun said as he let out a whistle.

“Why are you acting like you don’t know? It was your idea in the first place; you asked me twice at the airport, once on the plane, and four times during this car ride before you passed out and left me alone with my thoughts and the weird Colorado radio stations.”

“It’s because I like hearing you say ‘We’re staying at the Ritz in Beaver Creek’. And I only suggested going on a ski trip, you decided everything else.”

Chanyeol could feel Baekhyun’s eyes on him, as well as his heart flutter strangely, but he focused on the road and ignored that feeling instead. The snowy hills that bordered the road were growing in size, so Chanyeol decided that they were getting closer to their destination.

[ Track 1 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HM-nqhPI7ho)

“What are we doing for dinner tonight?” Baekhyun asked, which got him a glare from Chanyeol. “I’m kidding, I actually know this. We’re going into the little town of the resort and we’ll go to one of the restaurants… Hey, there it is!” Baekhyun pointed to a break in the snowy hills on the left, where a large sign atop a giant cobblestone platform read: _Beaver Creek Mountain Resort: Open All Seasons for Your Pleasure_.

“Well I guess there’s nothing stopping us from coming back here and golfing when we’re 60 years old,” Chanyeol stated as he turned into the entrance.

“But Chanyeol, you don’t even like golf.”

“It comes with age, I guess. Anyways, the Ritz is pretty far up the mountain, but I’m not sure how to get there. Will you check the directions on the papers I got from the travel agent? I think we go up the center road, but knowing us, we’ll get lost.”

Baekhyun pulled up several pieces of paper from the center console and shuffled the pages loudly. “Aha! Okay, it says here that we have to follow this road until we see the actual sign for the Ritz Carlton, and then we turn left to the main entrance where we can get our car valeted. It says we have to get our car valeted, like we don’t have another choice. Man, they’re really raking in a hell of a lot of money up here, huh? Wild…”

They made it to the entrance easy enough. It’s pretty hard to get lost on a straight road. They were staying for a week, but they packed smart and only had two bags each, and their boot-bags for their boots, and helmets. Chanyeol mentioned to the valet boy that they would have to get their snowboards as well. At that, the valet boy whistled very loudly, which startled both Baekhyun and Chanyeol. Suddenly a bellboy was there and began to unload their snowboards from the trunk of the car. Baekhyun looked very impressed as he thanked the bellboy. Chanyeol tossed the keys to the valet boy and the two headed into the hotel. Chanyeol really wasn’t prepared for the grandeur of the [ lobby ](https://s-ec.bstatic.com/images/hotel/max1024x768/229/22968250.jpg) , and neither was Baekhyun apparently, because Chanyeol slammed into an awestruck-Baekhyun’s back, causing both of them to tumble to the ground. _Well_ , Chanyeol thought, _this certainly is not how I imagined myself topping Baekhyun_.

“What an entrance,” Baekhyun said after Chanyeol helped him up off the floor.

“Tell me about it,” Chanyeol muttered.

“I gotta use the restroom, can you check us in?” Baekhyun asked as he put his bag down by the rest of their luggage.

“Yup, you go ahead,” Chanyeol said before adjusting his red hair and heading to the main desk.

“Hello,” He greeted the staff, “I’m checking in a room under surname Park.”

“Good afternoon, Mr. Park,” the staff replied. His nametag read Spencer. “I have you for a one-week stay, seven days and six nights, a two room residence with bath. A bedroom, with a separate living room, and a bathroom, is this correct?”

“Yes it is, thank you.”

“Excellent. Your room will be on the fourth floor. It says here that you have one other guest, would you like two room keys? If not, we will hold the extras here at the front desk if you should ever lose one.”

“Yes, I think it would be best that you hold the extras up here. We’re not particularly lucky with room keys, unfortunately.”

“Very good, sir. Here are your two room keys, along with th-”

“Chanyeol! They have mouthwash and pine-scented lotion in the bathrooms down here!” Baekhyun yelled from across the lobby. He trotted over, black hair flopping around, and grabbed Chanyeol’s arm in excitement. “Are we all set to go to the room?”

“Yeah, I’m just getting the room keys. Will you grab our bags?”

“Yup!” He chirped as he walked over to their luggage and immediately started conversing with the bellboy.

“Sorry about him, we’re both really excited to be here,” Chanyeol said with a smile.

“Not a problem, Mr. Park. May I ask what is the occasion? A honeymoon, or just a ski vacation?”

“Wh- What? Oh, we’re not- like- together or anything, he’s just my friend. We’re just friends.” Chanyeol could feel his ears heat up and fiddled with the strap of his backpack. _What makes him think that we’re here on a honeymoon? And wouldn’t he know that our room has two beds? Why would he ask such a question?_

“Ah, my apologies, sir. It was an incorrect assumption, forgive me. Please enjoy your stay at our resort and don’t hesitate to call us at the front desk if you have any questions. Again, here are your room keys and a brochure for Beaver Creek and one for the Ritz Carlton. You will find a schedule of the weekly events in your room.”

“Thank you, Spencer.” Chanyeol grabbed their keys with the brochure and walked over to Baekhyun.

“This is for you,” Chanyeol said as he handed a room key to Baekhyun.

“It’s so fancy. It’s a real key.”

“It _is_ the [ Ritz ](http://ki59bn1355-flywheel.netdna-ssl.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/12/Ritz.png) , after all. C’mon, I wanna see our room,” Chanyeol lightly slapped Baekhyun’s shoulder and asked the bellboy for help. The way to their room was interesting for Chanyeol; it brought on a lot of different thoughts. The lift was not all that small, and yet Baekhyun was standing very close to Chanyeol. _Perhaps he’s just giving the staff member space for when we get off the lift_ . Nonetheless, Chanyeol felt Baekhyun’s shoulder bump his arm, and fought the urge to look at him. _We’re just friends, so why am I feeling all this weirdness? I hope Baekhyun doesn’t notice anything. I bet he’s feeling fine, nothing like this. I’m probably just tired from all the traveling, and jet-lagged. I’ll feel better tomorrow after a good sleep_.

The bellboy left them at the door to their room, but not before Baekhyun gave him a tip. Chanyeol tried his key at the door with Baekhyun peeking over his shoulder.

“I suck at unlocking doors with real keys like these. If we ever get separated I guess I’m screwed,” he said behind Chanyeol.

Chanyeol unlocked the door and pushed it open, giving the two a good view of the living room. There was an archway that most likely led to the [ bedroom ](http://rsbtravel.com/sites/default/files/ritz_bachelorgulch_00314_galleries_1280x720.jpg), and then the bathroom was beyond that. They got all of their luggage out of the corridor and into the hotel room. They brought their suitcases into the bedroom and left everything else out in the living room. Chanyeol started to unpack his things, while Baekhyun grabbed the brochures and weekly events schedule.

“Hey, it says here that we have our own locker on the ground floor where we can store our ski stuff- like boards and boots and probably helmets,” he said as he flopped on his bed. “Yooo, these beds are really comfortable, woah,” Baekhyun put the papers on the bedside table and rolled over onto his back, closing his eyes with a sigh. Chanyeol caught himself staring at Baekhyun’s exposed stomach, as his shirt had come up with all his flailing.

“I’m gonna sleep so damn good tonight,” Baekhyun’s words broke Chanyeol out of his trance, and he continued unpacking his suitcase. _Get a grip, Park_. He checked his watch to give himself something else to do.

“It’s almost five o’clock, Baekhyun. Wanna head out for dinner?” Chanyeol asked as he approached Baekhyun. Baekhyun only hummed a response before rolling over onto his side, facing away from Chanyeol.

“Hey, don’t you fall asleep on me again, Byun Baekhyun,” He grabbed Baekhyun’s hand and tried to pull him off the bed, which earned him a groan, but also a standing Baekhyun as well. A victory.

“Now,” Chanyeol said as he adjusted Baekhyun’s dark hair. “Get your coat back on, and don’t forget your room key, phone, or wallet.” He turned away to do the same, and missed the small smile that tugged at the corners of Baekhyun’s mouth, as well as the blush that coloured his cheeks.

[ Track 2 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IRX_gxMhB_k)

Luckily, the small village within Beaver Creek Mountain was within walking distance. On the not so lucky end, it was cold, and had recently begun to snow, so they walked fast. Baekhyun would complain that Chanyeol was walking too fast, and Chanyeol would reply to grow longer legs. There were many different options as far as restaurants, but Chanyeol couldn't choose. In the end, Baekhyun suggested a pizzeria that was apparently quite popular because there was a 40 minute wait. When asked if there was any chance that it could be faster, the hostess said that everywhere else had an hour-long wait. They put their names in anyways, and were told to come back in about 30 minutes.

“So basically,” Baekhyun said as they strolled around the village trying to pass the time, “We have to put our names in an hour before we actually want to eat, because it will take that long to just get a table?”

“Yup. Let’s go into this store right here, I’m cold and they have cool winter gear,” Chanyeol nudged Baekhyun towards the door. They let out sighs of relief as they were greeted by the warm air of the interior.

“Well, might as well have a look around,” Baekhyun shrugged. He headed towards the far wall that had sweaters and light jackets lined up. Chanyeol followed him without a word. Rather than looking at things to buy, Chanyeol looked at Baekhyun. He watched as Baekhyun scanned the wall, was intrigued with the way his face changed when looking at things he liked, and things he did not like. Baekhyun would ask Chanyeol’s opinion on every piece of clothing, and Chanyeol would give slightly varied answers like, “If you like it” or “Everything looks good on you so go for it”.  He spotted a pile of crewneck sweatshirts that he thought looked comfortable and went to check them out. Unfortunately, they did not have any in his size. _Ah, a pity. Another time then_ … He was brought out of his thoughts when Baekhyun called his name.

“Chanyeol, I can’t reach this, help me.” Baekhyun was on his tiptoes reaching for a dark grey hoodie, but was just missing the hanger. The red-head returned to Baekhyun’s side and reached up to retrieve the hoodie.

“Thank you,” Baekhyun said with a slight smile as he admired the hoodie. It had a silver zipper and white drawstrings and was much too big for him, but that was a part of Baekhyun’s (and Chanyeol’s) style. Chanyeol could not help but think of how cute Baekhyun would look in it, the hem too far down his thighs, and the sleeves totally covering his hands.

“Chanyeol? Did you hear me?” Baekhyun had apparently been talking to Chanyeol about something.

“Huh?”

“Do you think I should get this?”

“Oh, uh… yes, yeah. You should get it.”

“Are you gonna get anything?”

“Nah, I didn’t see anything.”

“Well, alright. I’ll go buy this then.”

Chanyeol followed Baekhyun to the cashier, and stood next to him while he made his purchase.

“Is it time for dinner yet?” Baekhyun asked before they left the store.

“Yeah, it’s just about time for us to go back to that restaurant. Ready?”

“No.”

Chanyeol opened the door anyways. Baekhyun shrieked from the cold, Chanyeol laughed, and the two headed back to the restaurant. Baekhyun stayed close, and Chanyeol had to continually tell himself that it was only because it was cold and it would be bad to lose each other on the first night of their vacation. It wasn't like they had never walked like this before. Baekhyun would almost always bump his shoulder to Chanyeol’s arm when they walked together. It was nothing special. When they returned to the restaurant, they were able to get a table, and were very lucky to be sitting near the giant pizza oven. They placed their order quickly since it would probably take a while to come out.

They sat in a comfortable silence, looking around the restaurant, people-watching, taking it all in. Having been best friends for nearly seven years, the two could sit in silence without a problem. Chanyeol was really taking Baekhyun in, though. He looked as tired as Chanyeol felt, but was still managing to be energetic and not boring. Baekhyun stretched out his legs under the table, and bumped them on Chanyeol’s legs. He shoved them in between the red-head’s legs despite that, and leaned back in his chair. Chanyeol felt his heart thump in his chest, and was thankful for the wood-fire that was close by as it disguised his blush in the warm light of the restaurant.

They talked about their plans for tomorrow, what time to wake up, eat breakfast, and hit the slopes. They decided to try to get up the mountain before the morning rush, meaning they would have to wake up pretty early. But that wouldn't be a problem, considering they would both probably be asleep before 9pm. They fell into silence again, waiting for their food to arrive.

“I’m gonna go to the bathroom, and hopefully our pizza will be here when I get back,” Chanyeol stated.

“I’ll save you a slice,” Baekhyun replied as he pulled his phone out of his pocket.

“How kind of you.”

Chanyeol relieved himself in the restroom, washed his hands, and took a good, long look at himself in the mirror. _What’s up with you, Park? Why suddenly all these mixed thoughts? And about Baekhyun, your best friend? Why? Why now? Where is this all coming from? We’re in for one hell of a week if we don't get this sorted out now_. He gave a long sigh and splashed some cold water on his face.

“I know that stance. That’s the stance of a man on a date who’s losing hope,” A voice brought him out of his thoughts. Chanyeol looked over his right shoulder and saw a total stranger addressing him. He was not sure that this man was talking to him, but there was no one else in the restroom. The man had long silver hair that matched his long silver beard. He wore interestingly shaped spectacles, and Chanyeol thought that this man would fit in well at a Lord of the Rings convention.

“Uh…” Chanyeol and Baekhyun were certainly _not_ on a date, but nevertheless, Chanyeol felt this man was worth listening to, and he also felt that he didn’t really have a choice.

“I get it, I’ve been in the same situation. You’re on a date, when suddenly you don’t know how you feel about the other person. Do you want to keep dating, or cut it off? Are your feelings mutual? Are they growing, or fading? Is it worth it, even with the possibility that they could leave you? I will let you in on a secret, mate. It will help you not only in your romantic endeavours, but also in other aspects of your life, as well. The secret is to act naturally around this person. Don’t try to conceal any parts of yourself from this person that you wouldn't conceal from a sibling, for example, or from your best friend. Talk naturally, walk naturally, eat naturally, converse naturally, handle them naturally. If it feels normal to hold their hand, do that. If it feels normal to put your arm around their shoulder, do that.

“With this, you will know if they are worth pursuing, because you are showing them who you are, and are giving a sneak-peek of what you have to offer. I can’t guarantee that they won’t immediately fall in love with you and want to spend the rest of their life with you, but this will let _you_ know if they are still interested. Good luck, young man,” The old man finished with an earnest stare and a hand on Chanyeol’s shoulder. He walked out of the restroom, leaving Chanyeol entirely bewildered. He faced himself in the mirror, adjusted his red hair, gave a big sigh, and exited the bathroom. The old man’s words weirdly encouraged Chanyeol and brought back his lost confidence. _What was it that he said? “Don’t try to conceal any parts of yourself from this person that you wouldn't conceal from a sibling, for example, or from your best friend.” Does it help at all that Baekhyun is my best friend?_ Chanyeol’s mind was working fast, but came out of his thoughts when he saw that the pizza had arrived. He had forgotten how hungry he was.

He approached the table and saw that Baekhyun was still on his phone. _Talk naturally, walk naturally, eat naturally, converse naturally, handle them naturally_. Chanyeol decided to give it a go. He gave Baekhyun a pat on the shoulder as he returned to the seat.

“I see you saved me many slices,” Chanyeol said with a smirk.

“Yessir, I do have my manners, you know. I’m a man of my word,” Baekhyun replied coolly as he slipped his phone back into his pocket.

“Well, let’s dig in, then. I’m starving.”

The two ended up finishing the pizza, and had a great conversation about their plans for the week. Baekhyun was very intrigued with the outdoor pool, while Chanyeol wanted to check out the [ giant fireplaces ](http://www.alpineluxurychalets.com/media/W1siZiIsIjIwMTMvMDcvMjQvMDhfNDVfNThfNzU1X1JpdHo5LmpwZyJdLFsicCIsInRodW1iIiwiOTgweDQ0NSsxNysxNTMiXSxbInAiLCJlbmNvZGUiLCJqcGciLCItcXVhbGl0eSA5MCJdXQ/Ritz9.jpg?sha=4e12af7a) on one of the stone porches. Baekhyun managed to flag down their waiter, ask for the check, and payed for the whole meal. The walk back to the Ritz was much more enjoyable than previously. The snow had lost pace and had all about stopped. Baekhyun seemed to be in a better mood since he was skipping around, swinging his bag around that held his new hoodie. Chanyeol threw a couple of snowballs at his friend, and evaded the ones Baekhyun threw back at him. They entered the hotel and headed up to their room after greeting Spencer at the front desk. Baekhyun said he wanted to try the lock this time, and whispered a “Hell yeah” when he got it on the first try.

Chanyeol claimed the shower first, much to Baekhyun’s disdain. “I’ll be quick!” Chanyeol yelled before locking the bathroom door behind him. He’s known Baekhyun for long enough now to know that Baekhyun _will_ join you in the shower if he so desires. Locked doors don’t usually stop him, but the lock on this bathroom door did not show on the outside, so Chanyeol assumed he would be safe for now. The red-head quickly rinsed off, washed his hair and body, and finally felt clean and content after stepping out of the bathroom, steam rising from his exposed skin.

“Lookin’ good, Park,” Baekhyun said in an impressed tone. “Seems like the gym is finally payin’ off.”

“You’re not so bad yourself, Baek,” Chanyeol replied as he replaced the towel around his waist with joggers. He pulled out a tank-top from the dresser, and when he looked up he saw that Baekhyun was still staring at him. “You gonna shower or not?” He asked with a knowing smirk. “All that complaining for what?” Chanyeol was very surprised that he managed to keep his voice even. He was just acting naturally, after all. He put the rest of his clothes on as Baekhyun gathered his things and headed to the bathroom.

As soon as he heard the water running, the red-head flopped down on his bed, put his face into the pillows, and let out a groan. _This is gonna be a long week_. He tried to think positively, though. He was at Beaver Creek, in the goddamn Ritz Carlton, with his best friend. They were gonna go snowboarding tomorrow, and have a great time. He just had to sort out the constant thumping of his heart and the fuzzy feeling in his gut. Chanyeol rolled over onto his back, grabbed the TV remote and his phone, and turned both devices on. Some action movie came on immediately, so he just left that on. He was too tired to find the channel guide anyway. He saw on his phone that he had lots of text messages from one of his friends.

_Sehun: yo_

_Sehun: how ya doin_

_Sehun: heyyyy_

_Sehun: answer me_

_Sehun: I wanna kno whats up_

_Sehun: give me updates_

Chanyeol sent a reply to his friend: _yo whats up ive been traveling all day so i didnt check my phone much_. He waited only a few moments before he got a reply.

_Sehun: so…….. Whats up :)_

_Chanyeol: we made it to the hotel, and just got back from dinner 20 minutes ago_

_Sehun: how’s baekhyun ;)_

_Chanyeol: he’s in the shower, why the winky face?_

_Sehun: ;))_

_Chanyeol: sehun no_

_Sehun: what about Operation Get Chanyeol Laid by the End of the Week???????????_

_Chanyeol: enough about that alright it’s not something that will just magically happen_

_Sehun: my brother tells me that Beaver Creek is a magical place tho :))) and Junmyeon said you guys are at the Ritz Carlton? The plans totally gonna go thru_

_Chanyeol: if u say so. I’m going to bed so i’ll talk to you tomorrow_

_Sehun: goodnight ;)_

_Chanyeol: ENOUGH WITH THE WINKIES_

The red-head locked his phone and replaced it on the bedside table. Soon after, Baekhyun emerged from the bathroom fully clothed in his pajamas, and Chanyeol was surprised to find himself disappointed. Baekhyun crawled onto his own bed and asked, “What movie is this? I feel like I’ve seen it before.”

“That’s what you say about all action movies.”

Baekhyun only shrugged when his phone rang. He checked it and said that it was their friend, Jongdae, wanting to facetime.

“I want to talk to him too, c’mere,” Chanyeol said as he moved over on his own bed and patted the empty space for Baekhyun to join him. Baekhyun laid down on his stomach next to the red-head and they talked to Jongdae together. He was just checking in to know if they arrived at the hotel safely. Baekhyun said that they did without any troubles, and Chanyeol excitedly told Jongdae about how fancy the hotel was. As he did so, he was also moving closer to Baekhyun without noticing. _It’s just because they both had to fit into camera frame_ , one part of his mind argued. Chanyeol wanted to show Jongdae some pictures he had taken on his phone, so he reached over Baekhyun to the bedside table to grab it, and leaned in even closer to show them off. Chanyeol’s entire right side was flush to Baekhyun’s left side, and he felt comfortable. They eventually ended the call; neither of them moved, but rather laid in a comfortable silence, both doing their own thing. Chanyeol was busy texting his parents and sister to let them know he and Baekhyun made it safely to the hotel, and were going to bed soon. Baekhyun was playing a game on his phone.

Chanyeol locked his phone after a bit, and moved to replace it on the bedside table again. Suddenly, he got a thought to try something. He was again thinking of the wise words from the strange old man in the restroom of the pizzeria. It wouldn’t be anything out of the ordinary, so he tried it. Instead of retracting his arm all the way back to himself, Chanyeol let it drop down over Baekhyun’s back. When Baekhyun did not react, Chanyeol put his face into the pillows, grinning like an idiot. Again, he missed the soft smile on Baekhyun’s face, and the blush that crept up his neck and spread to his cheeks. After some time like that, Chanyeol turned his head to the right, resting his head back onto the pillows.

Looking at his friend he said, “I’m tired. What time is it?”

“Uhhh, it’s 9:15. We should probably go to bed,” Baekhyun said as he sat up, much to Chanyeol’s disappointment. After they were both settled in their beds, Baekhyun turned off the lights, and they were plunged into darkness. Chanyeol burrowed under the covers, placing himself on the warm patch left behind by Baekhyun’s body. He expected that he wouldn’t be able to fall asleep due to all the thoughts swarming in his head, but Chanyeol was asleep within minutes.

_He was walking down a corridor of the hotel. It did not seem to end. Chanyeol picked up his pace until he saw a door. He opened the door with ease, but when he walked through, he saw that the corridor was exactly the same as the one he came from. Chanyeol turned around to go back through the door, but it was gone. He only saw a stretch of the corridor behind him. He was confused. He walked on. He eventually came upon a window, but when he looked through, it turned out to be a mirror. He saw a young man he did not recognize. Chanyeol became even more confused. He walked on, and found another door. This one was more difficult to open. It was not locked, but stuck. He pushed hard. The door did not open. He threw his shoulder against the door once, twice. On the third try, the door opened, but Chanyeol was met by darkness and an echo of a slamming door. The sound was getting louder. Something was approaching Chanyeol, but he was not afraid. He only had to listen, and he would hear-_

Chanyeol suddenly awoke from his confusing dream, but was already forgetting it. _What had woken me up?_ He looked into the darkness, eyes adjusting quickly, and saw that Baekhyun’s bed was empty. The sheets were tangled, and the pillows were on the floor. The bathroom light was on and the sink was running. Chanyeol heard a sniffle and a cough from beyond the door. He sighed as he threw his own sheets off, and slowly rose from his bed. He grabbed a cold water bottle from the fridge, and walked to the bathroom. _Baek’s had another nightmare, hasn’t he?_ Chanyeol had slept in the same space with Baekhyun enough times to know about the nightmares. They really shook Baekhyun up each time, but Baekhyun would forget them almost immediately after being scared into consciousness, and would be left terrified with no hope to go back to sleep. Chanyeol had done his research, and found that the best support is to sit with the person, don’t ask them what happened, and make them drink water. He also found that a cold cloth to the face was good to calm the person down.

[ Track 3 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6oxD5hvzOoA)

Chanyeol knocked lightly on the door trying to make his voice even, “Baekhyun, can I come in?”

Chanyeol heard another sniffle and a weak “Yeah”. He opened the door slowly and found his friend on the floor, head in between his knees that were tucked up to his chest. He walked over to Baekhyun and placed the water bottle next to him without a word. Next, Chanyeol grabbed a washcloth, wet it with cold water, and folded it up. He sat down next to Baekhyun on the floor and placed the washcloth on the back of his neck. The red-head cracked open the water bottle and gently placed his arm around Baekhyun’s shoulders.

“I have water for you when you’re ready,” Chanyeol whispered. Baekhyun nodded.

Chanyeol kept the water bottle in his hand and his eyes on Baekhyun, who was taking deep breaths. He rubbed big circles over the other’s back, and could actually feel Baekhyun slowly relax. He didn’t know how much time had passed, but Baekhyun eventually lifted his head and accepted the water. His hands were shaking as he drained half of the bottle. He handed it back to Chanyeol, who put it aside. Baekhyun took the washcloth from his neck, opened it, put it over his face, sighed, and tossed it to the side. He finally leaned back against the wall with another big sigh, and put his head on Chanyeol’s shoulder. They sat like that for some time, giving Baekhyun plenty of time to calm down and collect himself.

“I think I’m okay,” Baekhyun eventually said in a low voice.

“Okay,” Chanyeol replied. He stood up first, and helped the other stand up. As Baekhyun went back to his bed, the red-head tidied up the bathroom. He turned off the light and returned to the bedroom. Baekhyun was already in his bed; Chanyeol helped him reorganize his bed sheets and pillows in the darkness. He eventually returned to his own bed and glanced at the clock which displayed 1:49am. The minutes ticked by, but it seemed that Baekhyun could not settle himself, as he was constantly shifting in his bed. Chanyeol knew what would happen next. It’s happened many times before. He heard bed sheets move in one big motion, and could hear Baekhyun’s feet come to his bed.

“Ch- Chanyeol? Can I… sleep with you tonight?”

Chanyeol turned over to face Baekhyun, supporting himself on his left arm, and opened his covers with a hummed response. The dark-haired crawled into the bed, tucking his knees up. Chanyeol pulled the covers back up, and let his arm rest over Baekhyun’s side. He figured it would be reassuring for Baekhyun, who had his eyes closed. Chanyeol stared at him for a while, wondering where his mind was at the moment. Without stopping himself, he reached up and brushed Baekhyun’s hair off his face before placing his arm back over his side. He finally closed his own eyes and let the exhaustion take over.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know it’s boring so far but it picks up soon, i promise! Can you tell i love dialogue?


	2. Day II

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> welcome to chapter 2!! i feel more confident about this chapter because it's actually going the places i want it to go!! please enjoy the music i've inserted and let me know in the comments how you like it!  
> Did yall watch exo's performance at the olympic closing ceremony? it was truly amazing and i'm so proud of them!! jongin's solo dance was so beautiful! he really Did That in a hanbok! that's such an accomplishment for our boys and they got so much exposure for it; i met lots of new exo-ls on twitter because of it. lets all keep supporting exo and showing them lots of love!
> 
> follow me!!  
> tumblr: freak-ofthe-nation  
> twt: @ayeowa

Chanyeol woke up to a loud alarm that sounded like someone hit the “Panic” button. He raised his head to squint at the clock, and it displayed 7:50am. Upon reaching for the snooze button somewhere to the right, Chanyeol found he was blocked by a body: Baekhyun, who had his head sandwiched between two pillows. He tried not to squish his friend as he leaned over and hit the top of the clock multiple times before successfully hitting snooze. After giving his mind and body time to wake up, Chanyeol made the realization that the sun had not yet risen. He rolled onto his back, and from what he could see through the window, there was only a weak golden light along the horizon of the mountain peaks.

Baekhyun was apparently awake as well, since Chanyeol felt his hand slide across his stomach and a leg shift over his own legs. The red-head looked over at the other, and saw his head was still under a pillow. He lifted the pillow, saw that Baekhyun was indeed awake with his eyes open, and was greeted with a smile.

Baekhyun pulled the pillow back down over his face and mumbled, “I don’t wanna get up.”

“Same,” Chanyeol replied, “But we have to.” Which earned a him a groan from the pillow sandwich. He tried to get up, but Baekhyun shifted so that he was mostly on top of Chanyeol. “No,” he grumbled.

“We have to at least buy our lift tickets today, Baekhyun. Plus, I can feel myself getting hungry again. C’mon…” Chanyeol dragged out the word as he placed his hands on Baekhyun’s waist and tried to free himself. For all his moaning, Baekhyun did not fight back, so that Chanyeol finally sat up and got out of bed with ease.

“Let’s get going, Byun!” Chanyeol picked up a pillow from the other bed and threw it at his friend, who threw it back at him with a “No!” He missed as Chanyeol walked into the bathroom. The red-head quickly got ready and came back into the bedroom to change when he saw Baekhyun was still in bed, who had smartly hidden all of the pillows under the covers. He peeked at Chanyeol from beneath the covers, his smiling eyes shaped like crescent moons. Chanyeol had no more “gentle weapons”, so he took off his shirt and moved to use it as a whip, which made Baekhyun’s eyes go wide and he hid himself completely under the covers.

“Baekhyun! Just… get ready soon please. I wanna eat.” He said and threw his shirt on the bed where Baekhyun’s head had been. What Chanyeol did not know was that Baekhyun had not hidden because he was afraid of getting hit, but rather because he was not ready to see Chanyeol shirtless so early in the morning, especially after last night. It had taken Baekhyun much longer to fall asleep than Chanyeol, but an unconscious Chanyeol is apparently extremely cuddly, and so Baekhyun was able to fall asleep in the tight embrace of his dearest friend.

Twenty minutes later, the pair headed down to breakfast. Chanyeol wanted to know where they could purchase their lift tickets, as well as where the locker room was, so he headed to the front desk while Baekhyun went into the dining area to get breakfast for them. The person at the front desk was not Spencer, but rather an older woman named Maya.

“Good morning, sir, what can I help you with?” She greeted Chanyeol.

“Good morning, I have a few questions about skiing stuff. Where can we purchase our lift tickets? And I read in the Ritz brochure thingy that there was a locker room for the hotel residents? Where is that, exactly?”

“Very good, sir. You can purchase your lift tickets at the ticket booths which are to the left of the ski lift near the hotel entrance. As for the locker rooms, if you would give me your room number, surname, and number of guests, I can tell you your locker number and the combination for the lock.”

“Four sixty one, Park, two guests.”

“Excellent. Your locker number is the same as your room number, four sixty one. Your combination is 30-30-14.”

“Thank you, Maya. Have a good day,” Chanyeol said as he typed the information into his phone.

“And to you, Mr. Park.”

Chanyeol found Baekhyun at a small table against floor-length windows, sipping coffee from an elegant blue coffee mug. Baekhyun had grabbed one for Chanyeol too.

“Have you looked at the menu yet?”

“Yeah but there’s also a breakfast buffet we can go to, which is complementary, so I figured we could do that instead. Did you find where to buy lift tickets?”

The red-head took a long sip of coffee before responding. “Yup, it’s by the ski lift. And I found out where the locker room is, by the way.”

“Good,” Baekhyun said as he sipped his coffee again.

“How are you feeling today? Did you get enough sleep?” Chanyeol asked with a furrowed brow.

“More or less.”

“I’m sorry… We can try to get to get to bed early again tonight. It may be easier since we’ll be quite exhausted after hitting the slopes today.”

Baekhyun hummed into his coffee mug and stood up to get breakfast. Chanyeol followed him. After eating, the two headed to their room, quickly gathered their things, and headed to ticket booth by the ski lift. Chanyeol bought them both week-passes, and after Baekhyun protested that he should be buying his own ticket, Chanyeol suggested to just buy all their meals for the rest of the week.

~

[ Track 4 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gDZjCwH4fyY)

After making it all the way to the top of the mountain, almost getting lost exploring the slopes, and tumbling around for three hours, Baekhyun suggested lunch in the village. One of the slopes led them directly to the bottom of one of the main lifts, which was a “ski-in/ski-out” part of the village. They made it to the bottom, but not without getting cut off by skiers and almost wiping out. After putting their boards on a rack, Baekhyun walked over to a large outdoor fireplace, took off his helmet and gloves, and began to warm his hands. Chanyeol followed him, laughed at Baekhyun’s helmet hair, and refused to take his own off because he knew it would be just as bad. He removed his face mask and mittens, and ran his fingers through Baekhyun’s hair a few times, trying to fix it.

“Face me, I think I can work with this,” Chanyeol said.

Baekhyun did as told and squinted up at his friend with a sky smirk. The sun was very bright today. Chanyeol fluffed Baekhyun’s dark hair twice more before patting him on the cheek and sticking his hands close to the fire. “I think I want to eat a sandwich for lunch,” he said facing the fire. He wasn’t sure which restaurants served what, so they would have to do some more exploring. After warming their hands for a few more moments, they set off to find lunch.

Chanyeol was surprised to see that many of the restaurants had outdoor seating areas, and there were actually people sitting outside. He supposed it was fine as long as you had a hot meal and hand warmers, but he and Baekhyun would much rather sit inside by a window to look out. Baekhyun tugged Chanyeol over to a place that looked pleasing; there was a chalkboard on an easel with a mini menu that consisted of soups and sandwiches: _Bingo_ . They placed their orders and found two seats at a long countertop along a window-wall. Baekhyun asked the red-head to guard his seat as he went to the bathroom. When he left, Chanyeol removed his helmet and attempted to fix his wild hair with the reflection of his goggles. _Not too bad_. Chanyeol looked out the window in front of him, and had a fairly good view of the ski slope they had just come down.

Baekhyun returned and greeted Chanyeol by tugging a piece of his hair, mentioning that he wouldn't be so lucky next time. Chanyeol guessed he meant avoiding torment for his helmet-hair. Their food arrived some time later, and they happily ate their sandwiches together, only speaking to complement the taste of the food. After clearing away their meal, Baekhyun pulled out a map of the slopes. Chanyeol leaned in close to check it out, and they worked together to figure out which slopes they wanted to go down; Baekhyun traced a path to visualize the best way back to their hotel.

Trying to act naturally, Chanyeol scooched his chair to be closer and put his left hand on Baekhyun’s shoulder. Continuing that, he traced slopes on the map as well, throwing in some suggestions, while his left hand creeped to the nape of Baekhyun’s neck. He noticed no reaction from Baekhyun, which he decided (after some consideration) that it was a good thing. They made a plan that would give them three more hours on the mountain, and then they would return to the hotel.

Looking out the window, Baekhyun said, “It’s crazy that the day is half over already.”

“I know… I haven’t even sabotaged you once today,” Chanyeol replied.

Baekhyun only side-eyed his friend and looked back out the window. Chanyeol was still close as he pulled his phone from his coat pocket, snapped a picture of the mountain, and then flipped the camera for a selfie. Ignoring to Baekhyun’s protests, Chanyeol took three pictures of them, arguing that it will make good memories

“Your hair looks fine, Baekhyun. Was my handy work not enough for you?” He asked as he ruffled his friend’s hair.

“Well, yours looks ‘fine’ too,” Baekhyun retorted as he reached up and tugged a piece of Chanyeol’s red hair again, to which Chanyeol fought back with a light slap on the shoulder. They both laughed sheepishly and gathered their things to head out again. The line for the main ski lift was getting long, so they hopped in line for a two-seater as quickly as they could. Within minutes, though, they were on a chair and flying up the mountain. The wind was picking up, to which made Chanyeol shriek, even though they had just come from a warm restaurant, and had eaten a filling lunch. Chanyeol swung his legs and rocked back and forth to warm up, but this caused the ski lift to swing on the cable as well.

“Chanyeol, hey! Stop! Don’t rock the chair!” Baekhyun exclaimed, trying to stop his friend from moving too much.

“It’s fine, I’m just trying to get warm,” Chanyeol said as he swung his right leg which had his board still attached at the boot.

“Stop, Chanyeol! I’m scared we’ll fall off! What if the cable snaps?”

“You have nothing to worry about,” Chanyeol replied as he slowed his movements. “These chairs are like double sturdy because this is ‘real’ skiing. They’re idiot-proof.”

“It’s scary, though,” Baekhyun said as he removed his goggles and gloves and wiped his eyes.

“Wh- are you crying?” Chanyeol was incredulous.

“Maybe,” Baekhyun repositioned his goggles over his face.

“Oh, shit, I’m sorry, Baekhyun. I was just teasing, I didn’t mean anything by it.” Chanyeol slowly scooted over on the chair and cautiously put his arm around his friend’s shoulders. He mentally reprimanded himself for being such a dick. He had forgotten about Baekhyun’s nightmare episode last night, and how Baekhyun still seemed off at breakfast. “I’m sorry for being insensitive,” he finally said.

“It’s okay. I’m alright.”

“Do you wanna go in the hot tubs after we’re done today?” The red-head asked.

“Uh, I’m not sure. I have a feeling I’ll be too tired after today. Maybe tomorrow? When I can get a better night’s sleep?”

“It’s a date, then,” Chanyeol said as he squeezed Baekhyun’s shoulders. They reached the top of the lift and shuffled off to the side to choose a slope from the list they had created.

~

Chanyeol made sure to check in with his friend twice more, hoping he wasn’t being annoying. He wanted to be sure that Baekhyun was actually enjoying himself. He didn’t want this whole week to be a bust. Luckily, when they decided to return to their hotel, Baekhyun seemed back to his normal spirits, if not a bit more playful than normal. The two were sitting at the top of a slope that would take them directly to the Ritz Carlton, strapping their boots into their bindings. When Chanyeol stood up to move down the run, Baekhyun smacked his snow-covered ass and sped down ahead of him. Chanyeol stood there for several moments, completely shocked- rooted in place- as if his snowboard had frozen to the snow. _At least he’s in a good mood_.

The red-head met Baekhyun at the bottom of the slope, unstrapped his boots from the board, and threw a snowball at his friend. They laughed and played around the whole walk back to the hotel, stored their things in their locker, and headed to their room. Chanyeol complained that he was hungry, so Baekhyun suggested they grab a snack at the bar. After that, they finally headed to their room, feeling tired but happy from their first day on the mountain. After entering the room and taking off their snow gear, both Chanyeol and Baekhyun flopped down on their beds. Chanyeol really couldn’t believe how exhausted he was, and how sore his feet were. _At least I wasn’t cold today. It could have been worse_.

After reviewing the new photos on his phone, returning calls and text messages, and spending a generous amount of time on Twitter, the red-head eventually pushed himself up and headed to the shower. He turned the water on hot, removed his shirt, and was closing the bathroom door when suddenly he saw a foot in the door and heard a “Not so fast, Park”. Chanyeol felt like he almost had a heart-attack.

[ Track 5 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Riupf1Qd74)

Baekhyun continued, “You got to shower first yesterday, it’s my turn.”

“I got here first, though. I won’t take forever- you know I take quick showers,” Chanyeol put his hands on his hips.

Baekhyun pursed his lips in thought.

“We’ll just shower together, then,” Chanyeol said without a thought.

No response.

Mentally, he was screaming at himself. _Did I- just say that? Out loud? What? What the hell is wrong with me?_ Physically, he was trying to control his facial expressions. He could feel his own eyes widen after speaking. He wondered what Baekhyun was thinking. _If he declines, it could be fine. It may put a damper on his good mood, and make things a little awkward, but we don’t stay awkward for too long in situations like this. But if he accepts… I can’t just take it back, can I? This will certainly be an experience…_

“Alright,” Baekhyun shrugged. I’ll be right back. _Don’t_ lock the door, Chanyeol, I know how to pick a lock.”

Baekhyun strode into the bedroom, giving Chanyeol only moments alone. He looked at himself in the mirror and made a “What the fuck have you just done?” expression, and pinched the bridge of his nose before Baekhyun returned and closed the door behind him, trapping both Chanyeol and the accumulating steam rising from the shower. _Just act natural, Just act natural, Just act natural, Just act natural…_ Chanyeol focused on taking off the rest of his clothes to keep himself from looking anywhere else. He stepped into the shower, and immediately closed his eyes to wet his hair. While pushing his hair back, he heard the shower door swing open and close again, and could actually _feel_ Baekhyun next to him. Suddenly, the “grand shower” of the Ritz Carlton felt too small, the water too hot.

The red-head opened his eyes and saw Baekhyun looking up at him. _I’m going to have a heart attack. It’s gonna happen. I’m gonna end up in the hospital before I’ve even had dinner_. Chanyeol’s heart was beating wildly, but he tried to pretend like everything was fine.

“Your turn,” He said as he traded places with his friend and started shampooing his own hair. _Just don’t look below the shoulders and you’ll be fine,_ He told himself. _Keep it above the belt, at least… Why is he looking at me like that?_ Baekhyun had an expectant look on his face. Chanyeol tilted his head as he looked at Baekhyun, and he could have sworn he saw Baekhyun’s eyes shift from his sudsy hair, to his lips, down his body, and back up again. It was probably just the steam messing with his vision, though. Chanyeol gets a lot of weird ideas in the shower.

They switched places a few more times. Baekhyun almost slipped twice, so Chanyeol would have to put his hands on his shoulders the next time they switched. The red-head set to washing his body last. He handed the bottle to Baekhyun, who only stretched out his arms, indicating that he wanted Chanyeol to do it for him. He sighed quietly, collecting himself, and squeezed a generous amount into his hand. Baekhyun liked a lot of suds and bubbles. He rubbed his hands together, creating said bubbles, and rubbed them along Baekhyun’s outstretched arms. He turned around, asking Chanyeol to get his back and shoulders too. Chanyeol did so, and rubbed the extra on his own torso.

Chanyeol was proud of himself for staying collected and not doing anything foolish. This would have been a “no biggie” kind of situation, if not for Chanyeol’s recent conflictions. Men _can_ shower together, after all. But after some consideration, he realized that these recent feelings are not superficial and would need a lot of attention to sort through. He can’t ignore them for much longer. Whatever was going on, Chanyeol knew at the very least that he was not feeling just friendship towards Baekhyun anymore. He had a small hope that his friend was reciprocating, but Baekhyun was Baekhyun, and Chanyeol could never quite sort out his true emotions or intentions on the first try.

They both rinsed off well; when Chanyeol had his eyes closed and was rinsing his skin, Baekhyun let his eyes roam and take it all in. Soon, the water was turned off and steam hung in the air throughout the bathroom. Baekhyun opened the shower door, and Chanyeol placed his hand at the small of his friend’s back as they stepped out. Baekhyun handed him a towel and the red-head gave a big sigh into the material before drying himself off, wrapping the towel around his waist and stepping out of the bathroom. _Well, that certainly could have been worse… What’s important now is to pretend you don’t feel any awkwardness and do things normally_.

Grabbing the remote and channel guide, Chanyeol chose a TV station that he actually recognized, using that as white noise before changing into warm clothes. He realized that they hadn’t been using the other room much; it was merely a place to toss their snowboarding gear in. Regardless, there was a nice desk and chair to work at, a comfortable couch that Chanyeol could actually stretch out on, another TV, and a big window that overlooked the city outside of the mountain resorts. He stepped into the “living room” and searched the desk for those brochures and information sheets Spencer gave them yesterday when checking in. When he couldn’t find them, he called for Baekhyun, since he had them yesterday. Baekhyun yelled back that he didn’t know, to which Chanyeol felt disgruntled. He continued searching, but came up empty-handed. He decided to just search up the restaurants of Beaver Creek on his laptop. He grabbed it from his backpack, sat at the desk, and went to work. Most of the restaurants had good reviews, but he was just worried about having to wait a long time again. After compiling a list of choices, he called Baekhyun in to help decide on where to eat that evening.

“After choosing, we should call in and put our names in, so that our wait won’t be as long,” Chanyeol stated as Baekhyun entered the room, black hair now fluffy from blow-drying it. He flicked Chanyeol’s ear before standing to the left, placing one hand on the table and the other on the back of the chair. He leaned in close to look at the computer screen, and Chanyeol read off his list of choices. They eventually decided on a “mediterranean fusion” restaurant; it had a pleasing interior and the menu looked appealing. Baekhyun called the restaurant and put in their names, which was a smart move because there was an hour wait. The hostess said their table would be held 15 minutes after the hour before giving it away. He relayed this to Chanyeol, and promptly jumped onto his bed and shoved his face into the pillows.

The red-head played around on his computer for about 20 minutes more, before shutting it and returning to the bedroom. There, he found Baekhyun asleep- curled into a ball with his cellphone off to the side- with the TV still on. He didn’t recognize the show that was on, but lowered the volume only, leaving it on. He contemplated waking up his friend now or later. They technically still had a while before they should head to dinner. _I should let him rest. He didn’t get much sleep last night and we’ve had a long day so far_. This ultimately gave Chanyeol time to think.

 _Okay, Chanyeol. The big question, the bottom line… Do I like Baekhyun? Do I like him in ways that are more than platonic?_ Chanyeol sat on his own bed in thought, drowning out all noise, centering himself. He thought of all the circumstances in which he felt flustered or shy because of something Baekhyun had done or said. He thought of the recent instances where his heart fluttered when he simply looked at Baekhyun. Chanyeol admitted to himself that these instances were not exclusive to this vacation; they had been happening for quite a few months now, but Chanyeol had been disregarding them. It was their frequency that forced Chanyeol to think it all over. _What about Baekhyun, though? He’s been acting… different. Does he know? Am I being obvious? Does… does he feel the same way? It’s hard to tell with him, he’s friendly to most people. Even though we are best friends, he’s actually more handsy with other people than he is with me. Why is that? We’re comfortable around each other, right? We have done just about everything together- travel, sleep, shower, go out to eat, hang out, drink, game, shop… So what?_ Chanyeol made a mental note that Baekhyun _did_ seem to be acting odd, more restrained somehow. _Am I embarrassing him?_

Chanyeol furrowed his brow, suddenly coming to the realization that he had never asked Baekhyun was his sexuality was; it was not something the two had ever discussed because it was never of any importance. As there were never any romantic feelings between them, they never felt it necessary to share this vital piece of information. _It’s sure as hell important now, though. But I can’t just ask him now… not with all this weird stuff happening between us…_ Chanyeol tried to think of a situation in which he could casually slide in the question, but he truly could not imagine such a thing. His thoughts were becoming overwhelming and incoherent, which caused him to lay back on the bed, putting his hands over his face. Coming out of his thoughts, he checked his watch and saw it was nearly time to go to dinner, and Baekhyun was still asleep.

The red-head quickly changed into jeans, a t-shirt, and a box-knit jumper prior to waking his friend. Chanyeol sat on Baekhyun’s bed and looked at him- he looked peaceful. He ran his fingers through Baekhyun’s hair several times; it was soft, as usual. Chanyeol loved touching Baekhyun’s hair. He took a good, long look at his face, appreciating the downward curve of his eyes and lips. He noticed the little beauty mark on his left ear and the one near the right corner of his mouth. Without thinking, Chanyeol traced his jawline, causing Baekhyun to stir. Chanyeol froze, waited a few moments, and placed his hand on his friend’s shoulder instead.

Giving it a shake, the red-head said, “Baekhyun, it’s almost time for dinner. Baekhyun, wake up.”

Baekhyun stirred again, but did not open his eyes. Chanyeol repeated himself, raising his voice slightly. He got a disgruntled noise as a reply, and Baekhyun reached up to brush Chanyeol’s hand away. He evaded this, though, and Chanyeol resumed gently shaking him. Baekhyun stretched his legs out and rolled onto his stomach, moaning again. Chanyeol pat his back this time, not giving in until his friend finally sat up, eyes still closed. He faced Chanyeol and gave a huff.

“Okay, I’m awake,” Baekhyun said as he slowly opened his eyes.

Chanyeol played with his dark hair to organize the pieces gone awry and said, “Great. Get ready now, it’s almost time for dinner. C’mon, you’ll feel better once you’ve had something to eat.” He didn’t move until Baekhyun stood up and pulled a change of clothes out of the dresser, lest he try to go back to sleep. Baekhyun put on his new hoodie, and Chanyeol complimented him.

They were quiet on the way to dinner. Chanyeol didn’t know if he should make conversation or stay silent. Baekhyun usually took a while to wake up after naps. When the pair arrived at the restaurant, they only had to wait five minutes before being seated. Chanyeol thanked Baekhyun for calling in ahead of time and putting their names in. Baekhyun nodded and gave a thumbs up. They got seated and ordered drinks (water), both too tired for alcohol. Baekhyun put his elbow on the table and propped his head on his hand, looking around the restaurant.

“It’s pretty cool in here,” He stated. Chanyeol agreed. He had hoped that Baekhyun would be in better spirits by now, but no dice. After their drinks came, Chanyeol checked in with Baekhyun.

“How are you doing, by the way? Did your nap help at all?”

“Eh, I’m still pretty tired, but you’re probably right that I’ll feel better after eating.”

“Yeah,” Chanyeol contemplated continuing the conversation. He tried it anyways, “We can snowboard less tomorrow and come in earlier to go to the heated pool, if you want. Or we could sleep in a bit later tomorrow morning since the slopes today weren’t all that crowded until noon.”

“We could try it, yeah,” Baekhyun nodded and switched hands, stretching his left arm on the table and propping up his head with his right.

Chanyeol couldn’t shake this bad feeling he had, so he asked, “You’re not- like- mad or anything, right? At me?”

Baekhyun’s expression became confused. “What? No, of course not. Why would I be mad at you?”

“I don’t know, you just seemed quieter than usual and I wanted to make sure that you’re okay, and if there’s anything I can do to help,” Chanyeol shrugged his shoulders, feeling foolish for asking.

“You haven’t done anything wrong, Chanyeol. I’m not mad at you at all, I’m actually very grateful that you’ve been taking care of me, of everything, for this whole trip. I don’t think I would be enjoying it as much if I were here with a different person. I’m happy to be here with you.”

Chanyeol held his gaze for a moment longer and then gave a sigh of relief. He smiled and said, “Okay, good. That’s good to hear. Just checking.” He kept his nervous hands busy by wringing his napkin in his lap.

Baekhyun nodded and leaned back in his chair. When their waitress returned, they put in their orders, and Baekhyun put in an order for two glasses of white wine as well, winking at Chanyeol’s shocked expression. “Just something to take the edge off,” he said with a smirk. Chanyeol couldn’t say no to that.

As their food arrived and they ate and drank, their moods lifted. The “tension” between himself and Baekhyun became less and less palpable as their food and wine disappeared; by the time they were done, they were laughing freely and sharing funny stories from their childhoods. Chanyeol rested his arm on the table, as he would constantly hit it while laughing. Repeatedly, Baekhyun would touch Chanyeol’s arm or tap the top of his hand when talking. It was a habit he had when sharing an engaging story, and Chanyeol felt very comfortable with it. He was happy acknowledging that they were indeed having a great time; they had returned to their normal selves and their normal moods.

[ Track 6 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lGW7lAHw9Qk)

They asked for the check, paid, and left the restaurant after some time. Feeling good, Chanyeol suggested they do some more shopping. Baekhyun agreed, and lead Chanyeol towards a store he was interested in by grabbing his hand and pulling him in that direction. Chanyeol let himself be lead with a smile on his face. This store had lots of chic and fashionable pieces, which they were both totally interested in. They fooled around in the store mostly, mocking each other by choosing something ridiculous and saying things like, “This would look _sooo_ good on you!”. The red-head pulled out a royal purple box-knit jumper and complemented it.

“I like it too,” Baekhyun said while feeling the material. “It’s really soft.”

“You should get one, too. We can do a couple look so we won’t lose each other in public,” Chanyeol said with a laugh.

“Ah, should I?” Baekhyun pulled a jumper of his own and held it up while checking it in a mirror. “Okay, let’s do it. Should I get the same colour?”

“Hmm, do you like any of the others? I like the lighter purple, and the deep blue one here,” Chanyeol suggested. Baekhyun pouted in thought before deciding on the deep blue jumper. Chanyeol thought with a smile he looked cute when he pouted. They headed up to the cashier to pay, and Baekhyun excitedly mentioned that they were doing a couple look. The cashier only smiled and wished them good fortune for the rest of their vacation. Chanyeol thought he should specify that they were, in fact, not a couple, but Baekhyun was already pulling him out of the store. The cold air surprised the pair, making Chanyeol shove his hands deep in the pockets of his parka. Baekhyun complained as he zipped up his own parka, asking how it got so cold so fast, and held onto his friend’s arm. They walked around the little village for a while longer, admiring the night life and all the different things to do. They tried some mulled wine and hot cakes and sat by a fireplace for a small while, warming up their cold hands.

Chanyeol felt as light as air as they returned to the hotel. He wanted to ask about the heated pool, so he veered to the left towards the front desk. Baekhyun wasn’t paying attention and became detached from Chanyeol, who held out his hand behind him and motioned for Baekhyun to follow. Baekhyun grabbed his hand before he could replace it in his pocket. This felt completely normal.

“Hello, Spencer, I have a question,” Chanyeol said as he tightened his grip on Baekhyun’s hand.

“Good evening, Mr. Park, Mr. Byun. What can I help you with?”

“The heated pools, what times are they open? And how do we get there?”

“Of course, the pool is open from 9am to 11pm. It is set at a high temperature in the winter so all guests at the Ritz Carlton can enjoy some swimming on cold winter days like these. You can find the pool entrance by following the lobby to its end, and exiting the door to the right. Towels are provided for all guests, but we ask that you please limit yourselves to two towels per person. Is there anything else?” Spencer asked.

“Nope, that’s all. Thank you Spencer!” Chanyeol said with a wave

“Of course. Good evening, Mr. Park, Mr. Byun.”

The pair set off towards the lift to get to their room. Once the doors opened, they encountered the same bellboy that helped them yesterday. Baekhyun recognized him and asked his name. The boy nervously said “Rian” while pointing to the nametag pinned to his blazer. Rian glanced at the pair’s connected hands while Baekhyun thanked him for his help yesterday. He nodded with a “You’re very welcome sir,” and let them into the lift before walking into the lobby.

Chanyeol and Baekhyun met eyes, shared look with raised eyebrows, and shrugged. Baekhyun pressed the “4” button and the lift doors closed. Chanyeol checked his wristwatch and saw that it was nearly 9pm. He was so surprised that he dropped Baekhyun’s hand and held his wristwatch steady to be sure he was reading it correctly.

“Wow, it’s already so late. How long were we out tonight?” He asked.

“Dunno, a few hours?” Baekhyun replied as they stepped out of the lift and walked to their hotel door, key ready. Baekhyun got it on the first try again, let Chanyeol in ahead of himself, and closed the door behind them. They kicked off their boots and tossed their parkas over the couch in the living room. Baekhyun wanted to wear his new jumper right away, so he changed from jeans to sweats, removed his new hoodie and shirt, and put his new jumper on, relishing in the way the yarn of the jumper felt on his skin. He hugged himself as he laid down on his bed and tucked his knees into his chest.

“Is it that comfortable, Baekhyun?” Chanyeol asked after watching that all happen.

Baekhyun only hummed a response before suggesting to “try it too”. Chanyeol took up the recommendation and pulled his new jumper from the shopping bag. It still smelled like the store, so Chanyeol spritzed it with his own cologne. _Much better_ . He changed into sweats like Baekhyun, took off his layers, and pulled the jumper over his head. Picking up the TV remote, Chanyeol hit the power button, adjusted the volume, and replaced it on the bedside table. He pulled out his phone and saw that Sehun had called. _Oh, boy. What’s this about?_ The red-head contemplated if he should take the call in the other room. Glancing over his phone at Baekhyun, he saw his friend engrossed in a game, so he decided to return the call where he was.

The phone rang three times before Sehun picked up, who sounded tired.

“Hello?” Sehun said.

“Sehun, hi. What did you call me for earlier?”

“What? Oh, that… I was just checking in with you, you know.” Chanyeol could literally hear him smirking. “What time is is over there?”

“A bit after 9pm,” Chanyeol said after checking his watch and stretching out on the bed.

“Sehun’s on the phone?” Baekhyun asked.

“Is that Baekhyun?” Sehun asked. “Put me on speaker, what are you doing?”

“I’m restricting you from saying stupid stuff,” Chanyeol retorted as Baekhyun approached the bed. He sat upright and held his arm out to defend himself incase Baekhyun started using pillows as weapons.

“Hey, put him on speaker, I wanna talk to him too,” Baekhyun whined.

“Put me on speaker, Chanyeol!” Sehun yelled through the phone. Chanyeol was becoming flustered from his friends yelling at him. Baekhyun looked about ready to do something- snatch the phone away probably- and Sehun would definitely hang up if he didn’t get his way. Chanyeol was ready to give in when Baekhyun suddenly pushed Chanyeol’s chest and sat on his thighs. Silence fell between them as they held eye contact, Chanyeol still holding the phone to his ear. Sehun was still yelling but Chanyeol didn’t seem to hear him anymore. He only heard Baekhyun’s voice and felt a twist in his gut.

“Put him on speaker,” Baekhyun said curtly with folded arms. Chanyeol was not sure that this was really happening. _Am I hallucinating? Is this real? What?_ He wasn’t sure, but he was kinda turned on, which was bad. Baekhyun did not look very intimidating with his sweater paws and pout, but he still managed to be convincing. Chanyeol did as he was told, and finally put Sehun on speaker.

“Okay, brat, you’re on speaker, what do you want?” Chanyeol asked in a surprisingly even tone, keeping his eyes on the phone.

“I told you, I just wanted to check in with you guys!” Sehun said. He sounded annoyed.

Baekhyun spoke up, “What do you want to know? We basically just snowboarded all day, ate, showered, I took a nap, and we just got back from dinner.”

“Oh, well… Send me any pictures you guys took, I wanna see what it looks like! Uhm… I miss you, and I totally won’t be waiting at the airport to pick you guys up! Okay, bye!”

“Bye, Sehun,” the pair said before Chanyeol ended the call. The red-head sent Sehun a text to keep himself distracted, as Baekhyun had not moved yet.

_Chanyeol: Sehun, I swear, you better stop messing around like that_

_Sehun: what did i do, i just wanted to say hi youre the one messing around_

_Sehun: why are you so weird all of the sudden all i did was call and you wouldnt put me on speaker and then baekhyun was yelling and then there was just silence..._

_Sehun: did something happen?_

_Sehun: DID SOMETHING HAPPEN_

_Sehun: TELL ME WHAT DID HE DO. OOOOOHHHH BAEKHYUN REALLY DID SOMETHING TO SHUT YOU UP YOU HAVE TO TELL ME NOW SPILL THE TEA BRO_

_Chanyeol: NOTHING HAPPENED GOODNIGHT SEHUN_

_Sehun: ohhhhh my god something totally happened. You HAVE to tell me_

_Chanyeol: nothing happened goodnight sehun_

_Sehun: you cant hide it from me, bro, ill find out one way or another_

_Sehun: ill just ask baekhyun_

_Chanyeol: DO NOT!!! dont you dare_

_Sehun: then tell me… obviously it wasnt anything too wild bc you didnt hang up, so just tellllll meeeeeee_

Baekhyun finally freed Chanyeol and stretched out like a cat at the foot of the bed. The red-head paused his texting, contemplating if he would actually tell Sehun what happened. Even though he was trying to help Chanyeol and be supportive, he was doing a terrible job.

_Chanyeol: he used an intimidation technique okay leave me alone. I think he’s still buzzed from dinner_

_Sehun: i dont know what that means but i think its a euphemism for something sexy ;) good luck love birds, and sober up before gettin crazy_

_Chanyeol: nothings gonna happen tonight. goodnight sehun, for the last time_

_Sehun: tonight ;))))))))_

Chanyeol left Sehun on read and sighed as he locked his phone and replaced it on the bedside table. He had no idea what to do now, so he focused on the TV. This was the first time he actually paid attention to it. He wanted to stretch out his legs, but Baekhyun was in his way, still laying at the foot of the bed. He extended his legs anyways as payback. Baekhyun grunted in surprise and rolled out from under Chanyeol’s legs, and moved to lay down on the red-head’s right. There certainly was enough room for both of them to have a lot of space on the bed, but Baekhyun stayed close nonetheless. Chanyeol suddenly felt drained and started getting ready for bed. He organized his things and grabbed two water bottles, placing one on each side of the bedside table for Baekhyun and himself.

“Okay, I’m going to bed,” Chanyeol said to Baekhyun (who was already under the covers of Chanyeol’s bed and facing away) as he set an alarm for the next morning. “You should get ready for bed, as well.”

Baekhyun lifted his head, “I am ready for bed.”

“Why don’t you go to your own bed then?”

Baekhyun hesitated before responding. He flipped over and faced his friend as he supported himself on his left arm. He became very interested in the box-knit pattern of his sleeve as he spoke. “Can I sleep with you again tonight? I… don’t want to get another nightmare or whatever, and I think- just- not sleeping alone helps me… you know…”

“Oh, y- yeah, yeah, of course, I’m alright with that. You’re ready for bed, then? I’m gonna turn off the lights.”

“Yeah, go ahead.”

Chanyeol flipped the light switch and was thrown into darkness. He reached the bed and pulled the covers back, sliding in next to his friend. Baekhyun was somewhere in the middle of the bed and began to scooch to the side when Chanyeol rolled onto his right side and stopped him with a hand on his chest.

“Where do you think you’re going? Just stay there, it’s fine,” the red-head mumbled, feeling even more tired. Before Baekhyun could fuss anymore, Chanyeol put a finger over his lips and then moved his hand back onto his chest. After getting more comfortable, Chanyeol’s hand moved down Baekhyun’s torso and stopped at his waist. He hiked up his left leg and slotted it in between the latter’s legs.

Checking in with Baekhyun one more time, he asked, “You good?”

“Yeah, I’m… I’m alright.”

“That’s good to hear.”

~

[ Track 7 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CvFH_6DNRCY)

Chanyeol woke up suddenly, wondering where he was. He was overheated, and his throat was dry. He sat up slowly, taking in his surroundings. His memory came back to him as his eyes adjusted to the darkness of the room. Chanyeol felt a weight on his lap, and saw an arm stretched across it. He gently lifted the arm, moved out from under it and the bed covers, and stood up. The red-head pulled his jumper off, brushed his hair back, and grabbed a water bottle off the bedside table. Walking towards the window, he peered through the curtains and drank half of the bottle. The night sky was surprisingly clear, providing an excellent view of a quarter moon surrounded by brilliant stars, shining over the ridges of the snowy mountains.

As he cooled off, he turned around and looked at the bed, moonlight shining into the room. Chanyeol was able to see Baekhyun under the covers of the bed, facing away. He was glad that Baekhyun hadn’t experienced any nightmares thus far. _I guess he was right when he said not sleeping alone was helpful. Not sure why that is, but… I certainly don’t have a problem with it._ Baekhyun had fallen asleep very quickly, leaving Chanyeol alone with his thoughts. He mulled everything over while gently running his fingers through Baekhyun’s hair, again tracing the outline of his slim jaw. He looked at Baekhyun and saw someone who was so much more than just a friend.

The red-head returned to his present self, returned his attention to the mountain peaks, thinking of profound things. _What am I to Baekhyun? Would he call me his best friend? How would he define our relationship? Surely at this point, there should be something to be said about the way we look at each other, speak with each other, touch, interact, everything…_ But whatever that was, Chanyeol could not possibly figure out. He looked to the moon, pleading for answers, but discovered nothing. He only saw the moon and shivered. _Is the moon as lonely as I am? Am I lonely? No, I don’t think so…_ He finished the rest of his water and placed the empty bottle on the dresser.

Chanyeol didn’t know what to think anymore. He didn’t particularly like getting lost in thought, especially as of late. _I guess I am in trouble, huh?_ He reached out to touch the glass of the window, feeling the cold seep into his hand. He peered out the window and looked upon the moon one more time before turning around and heading back to bed. He slipped under the covers as quietly as possible, not wanting to wake Baekhyun. Chanyeol didn’t put the jumper back on, lest he get over-heated again. While adjusting the covers, Baekhyun moved suddenly, causing Chanyeol to freeze. He only reached out and snuggled closer, though, burrowing his face in the red-head’s chest with a sigh of content. The latter, then, didn’t know what to do with himself. He was simply overwhelmed with affection. He felt himself smile softly as he wrapped his arms around Baekhyun, holding him tight. Chanyeol had no idea what time it was, but he could still see the moon through the curtains. Perhaps this was the answer he so deeply desired. He closed his eyes and waited for sleep to take him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yay for couple outfits and soft cuddles! ╰(°ㅂ°)╯


	3. Day III

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i took the L on chapter 3 sorry everyone ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯  
> but never fear! things are heating up in Beaver Creek :)  
> also i think this is my longest chapter so far; its about 12 pages w/ 1.15 spacing in my draft document so yeah  
> just a tip bc i discovered something annoying: if u reading this on a computer/laptop, then right click on the tracks i've inserted and open the music in a new tab, otherwise ao3 will BLAST OFF and youll lose your place which is super annoying so yeah there's that aaaaannnnnd enjoy!
> 
> follow me!!  
> tumblr: freak-ofthe-nation  
> twt: @ayeowa

Chanyeol awoke to the sound of an alarm. He lifted his head from the pillow and saw warm rays of sunlight streaming into the room. The sound of the alarm was loud and annoying, but he just couldn't make himself move properly to turn it off. It wasn't until the red-head dropped his head back onto the pillow and moved to stretched that he noticed the body flush to his own: Baekhyun, _of course_. Chanyeol held him in a sort of back hug, left arm draped over Baekhyun’s side, right arm up under the pillows. Baekhyun was loosely holding Chanyeol’s left hand; his skin was warm from sleep. The alarm was becoming irritating, so the red-head carefully detached himself from his friend and rolled over to the left onto his back. He reached towards the bedside table and tried hitting the top of the clock, which worked apparently, because the alarm was no longer ringing. Chanyeol sighed and put his left arm over his eyes.

Feeling a hand on his bare stomach, Chanyeol uncovered his eyes. He peered over just to his right where Baekhyun (who had rolled over and was now facing Chanyeol) lay, suddenly remembering that he was, in fact, shirtless. Not knowing what to do, Chanyeol hoped that Baekhyun’s hand didn’t linger for too long… or wander too far down. Maybe it was because it was early and he was not fully awake, but Chanyeol discovered he didn’t actually care if those things _did_ happen. To prevent this, though, he put his hand on Baekhyun’s arm. _Just a little precaution, is all_. His fingers seemed to move on their own as they slid up Baekhyun’s sleeve; Baekhyun’s skin was very soft.

The pair lay like that for some time, Baekhyun still possibly asleep, Chanyeol being mindful not to wake him. After his own fidgeting became too much, Chanyeol decided to get up and start getting ready. Baekhyun rolled over again, curling up into a ball where Chanyeol’s body had just been. He would let Baekhyun sleep just a bit longer. The red-head headed to the bathroom, where he brushed his teeth and hair, washed and shaved his face, and giving himself a once over with his cologne, re-entered the bedroom. Het set out his clothes for snowboarding that day, and walked back to the bed. The clock showed 8:12am, which surprised Chanyeol. He really thought it was later in the morning. _I can probably spare a few more minutes…_

The red-head picked his new jumper up off the floor, put it on, grabbed his phone, and layed back down in bed. He saw the usual notifications- text messages, emails, Twitter updates. After going through it all- even checking the weather forecast for the day- he felt the bed move as Baekhyun rolled over again, this time hugging Chanyeol’s torso tightly. Chanyeol simply couldn’t help himself- he opened the camera on his phone and snapped a picture, thinking of their “couple look” with their new jumpers. He returned his phone on the bedside table, put his left hand on Baekhyun’s arm, and put the right on his head. Chanyeol ran his fingers through the dark strands gently, looking down with a serene smile. Baekhyun’s hair was quite messy, but Chanyeol thought that made him look even more cute.

Several minutes passed before Baekhyun moved again; Chanyeol was looking out the window blankly, not thinking of anything in particular. He felt Baekhyun’s head shift up slightly to look at him. When their met eyes, both gave small smiles, and Chanyeol saw colour rise up his friend’s face.

Baekhyun put his head down on Chanyeol’s stomach and asked, “What time is it?”

“It’s 8:22-ish. Almost 8:30. Did you just wake up? How did you sleep?”

“I slept pretty well. I was surprised… thanks for, uh, letting me share the bed. I think it helped a lot.”

“Of course, Baekhyun. That’s good to hear… If it would help,” Chanyeol spoke slowly, “We can sleep together for the rest of the vacation.” He waited anxiously for Baekhyun’s response.

“Okay.”

Chanyeol felt immensely relieved. “Well, when you’re ready, start getting geared up for snowboarding today. The weather forecast calls for sunshine all day.”

“Ah, but this bed is so comfortable and I’m so lazy…” Baekhyun mumbled.

“But snowboarding,” Chanyeol retorted.

“But the bed.”

“You drive a hard bargain, Baekhyun, but the majority rules.”

“What majority? It’s just me and you, there literally cannot be a ‘majority rule’ between two people.”

“Says who?”

“Me,” Baekhyun said as he swung his leg over Chanyeol’s body and layed on top of him, looking at the red-head with a slight pout.

“Hmm, not very convincing, I’m afraid,” Chanyeol folded his arms, ignoring the hammering of his heart.

“Well, I have you trapped here now, so I win.”

“Is that so? ‘Cause if I do this,” Chanyeol didn’t hesitate before putting his hands on Baekhyun’s waist, flipped the two of them over, and was now laying on top of Baekhyun- straddling him, actually. “I think that makes me the winner,” he finished with a smirk.

[ Track 8 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sBVca5KOpkM)

Baekhyun was silent as he stared up at Chanyeol, eyes wide and lips slightly parted. Chanyeol was sure that he saw Baekhyun’s eyes shift down to his lips, and then back up again. His heart was beating wildly, and could feel heat rushing up his neck to his cheeks. Both of them were frozen, waiting for the other to do something.

“Can I kiss you?” The red-head asked without a second thought.

Baekhyun immediately nodded. A pink hue tinted his cheeks. His eyes shifted again.

Chanyeol moved his weight to his left forearm, touching Baekhyun’s chin with his right hand. The latter put his hands on Chanyeol’s thighs, holding him in place. He leaned down slowly, closer, closer, closer. Their lips touched, and Chanyeol felt electric. The kiss was sweet and simple, nothing too much. Baekhyun’s hands shifted slowly upwards, his left hand drifting up and under Chanyeol’s jumper to his lower back, fingers ever so slightly tucking into the waistband of Chanyeol’s sweatpants. Backing away, their eyes met; Baekhyun swallowed, lips parted again. The red-head shifted his hand slightly and sweeped Baekhyun’s bottom lip with his thumb. He felt very intrigued, but he didn’t know what else to do.

Sitting back on Baekhyun’s thighs, Chanyeol said, “We should… probably get ready.” His voice sounded far away. His head was foggy.

Baekhyun sounded distracted as he replied with a “Yeah,” and allowed Chanyeol to swing his leg over, and then slowly get up from the bed, all the while appearing like he had something to say. The red-head left the room to put his snow pants on while Baekhyun slowly sat up on the bed, ghosting his own fingers over his bottom lip with another deep blush and a growing smile. If only Chanyeol knew…

“About how ready are you?” Chanyeol asked 10 minutes later, peering into the bedroom with his phone in hand.

“I’m basically ready now,” Baekhyun replied as he shoved his foot into a snow boot.

“Alright well, let’s get going then.” They made eye contact and Chanyeol retreated to his phone, willing his heart to calm down. “I’m just thinking ahead, do you know where or what you would want to eat for lunch or dinner?”

“For lunch, I’m not sure,” Baekhyun said as they left their hotel room and headed towards the lift. He pressed the ‘down’ button and continued, “As for dinner, do you wanna go to the restaurant here? We can probably make reservations at the front desk.”

“Uh, yeah, that’ll work. We can just wing it for lunch like yesterday,” He gave Baekhyun a smile as the lift reached the lobby. The pair stepped out and headed towards the front desk.

“Morning, Spencer,” Baekhyun greeted.

“Good morning, Mr. Byun, Mr. Park. Is there anything I can help you with?”

“Yeah, we’d like to make a reservation for dinner tonight at the restaurant here,” Chanyeol spoke up.

“Of course, what time will you be dining with us this evening?”

“Oh, uhm, hows about…” Chanyeol looked to Baekhyun with a raised brow and said, “6:30 this evening? That should work.”

“Perfect, I will add your names to the books,” Spencer said as he typed into the computer.

“Thank you, see y-” Chanyeol was turning to leave but was stopped by Baekhyun’s hand gripping his wrist.

“I have a question too, actually.” He pulled Chanyeol next to him. “Can you tell us about the outdoor fireplaces? How late are those open?”

“Of course, Mr. Byun.” Spencer said with a smile. “The fireplaces are located on the Western Porch and are a very _hot_ commodity. There are several pits on the porch where you can enjoy the winter nights while staying warm. There is a fair amount of seating for Ritz Carlton residents, and you may order drinks at the outside bar if you so desire. Anything else I can help you with?”

 _Yeah, help me figure out what the fuck just happened between me and Baekhyun 15 minutes ago and I’ll pay for your_ own _stay at the Ritz_ , Chanyeol thought dejectedly.

“Nope! That’s all, thank you, Spencer! See ya later,” Baekhyun finally released Chanyeol’s wrist and the pair headed to breakfast. The red-head wasn’t really paying attention to much at breakfast, he just followed Baekhyun around the buffet tables and put random foods on his plate. He almost spilled his coffee three times, as well. The two sat down to eat and were more or less silent. Chanyeol managed to look as unbothered as Baekhyun, but he certainly did not feel that way. He wanted to talk to Baekhyun- _needed_ to- about what had actually happened, but he couldn't muster the courage to speak about it. He kept his eyes on his food, jumping when he felt Baekhyun’s legs mingle with his own under the table.

 _Surely he’s not mad at me… right? He nodded when I asked if I could- before we- kissed. Oh, god… We kissed. Was it that bad? I didn’t think so. What’s going through his head right now? Is he mad at me? Do I ask him? How do I know I didn’t just completely and entirely ruin our friendship? I can’t even look at him without blushing right now…_ Chanyeol tried for a peek at Baekhyun, but the latter was already staring at him, causing Chanyeol to- you guessed it- break out in a blush that reached the tips of his ears. Baekhyun cocked his head to the side and asked what was wrong. Chanyeol assured it was nothing as he ripped apart a paper napkin in his lap.

After finishing their meal, the pair headed to the locker room to grab the rest of their gear. They were silent the whole time. Chanyeol was having a mental battle, trying to decide if he should try to talk to Baekhyun about their _encounter_ from earlier that morning. It was exhausting him, even though he slept very well last night. _How do I ask? Do I dare? What can I say that will make it seem as normal and not awkward as possible? What if he doesn’t want to talk about it? What if he brushes it off like it was nothing? Surely, something like this is something we_ have _to talk about…_ The pair headed out the building, rounding the corner towards the ski lift.

Making up his mind, Chanyeol sighed and spoke, thankful for his face mask and goggles that hid his anxious expression. “Baekhyun, can we… talk about what happened this morning?”

Baekhyun froze in his steps, not moving to turn and face Chanyeol. “Yeah, about that…”

Chanyeol did not like Baekhyun’s tone, and prepared himself for the worst.

“I- oh, how do I say this?” Baekhyun lifted his goggles and placed them on his helmet. “I liked it,” His voice was so low that Chanyeol almost did not hear him. He wasn’t sure that he _had_ heard him.

“You- wait, what? You… what?” Chanyeol let his snowboard drop to the ground.

Baekhyun dropped his board as well and repeated himself, finally facing Chanyeol. “I liked that you kissed me, okay?” He was staring up at the red-head earnestly. Chanyeol took his goggles off, as if that would help clear the thoughts that had exploded in his head.

“Really? You liked it?” Chanyeol whispered, more to himself.

“Do you want me to prove it, Chanyeol? Huh? How many times are you gonna make me say it?”

“I- well, you don’t have to keep repeating yourself, sorry. I just… so… well, what do we do about it?” Chanyeol was feeling too many emotions; he felt relieved, happy, excited, anxious, confused, shocked, and a dozen other emotions that he couldn't sort through.

“I don’t know… h- how do you feel about it?” Baekhyun asked. He seemed a bit… on edge, like he was waiting for a cue to do something.

“I think… I wanna do it again, sometime soon,” Chanyeol replied as he bent over to pick up his snowboard, hugging it to his chest.

“Noted,” Baekhyun said as he did the same. They shared a look and headed towards the ski lift together. Chanyeol felt as light as the snow. He certainly did not expect that to go so smoothly, but then again, Beaver Creek was a magical place, as Sehun had said. _Perhaps we can make this work_ , Chanyeol truly did not know what the rest of this week held for him, but he had a better outlook on it all. They strapped into their boards and got on the ski lift. The red-head nonchalantly put his arm on the back of the chair. Baekhyun leaned into him. He felt warmth blossom in his chest.

~

[ Track 9 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7dTBoW5H9k)

The pair had a late lunch at the village again, this time settling for a noodle shop that reminded them of home. They shared several plates, eating until they were full. Chanyeol was in a much better mood than he was previously that morning, and he felt no tension with Baekhyun, which lifted his spirits higher. He constantly wanted to try things, but was not sure where the boundaries were between himself and his friend anymore. He liked seeing Baekhyun’s small reactions. Chanyeol didn’t think it would be right to kiss Baekhyun again- yet. At least not in such a public place, despite how much he wanted to. They warmed up at a fireplace outside sitting with their backs to the flames, Chanyeol’s arm around Baekhyun’s shoulders; the sky was a vibrant blue, sun was shining brightly, and it felt warm on Chanyeol’s face, despite the cold air.

Baekhyun rested his head on the red-head’s shoulder. “I’m tired. How long have we been out today?”

“Almost three hours, why? Do you wanna head back? I don’t mind.” Chanyeol asked.

“No, I’m just thinking out loud. Kinda in a perpetual state of ‘tired’, to be honest.”

“I feel that. Just let me know when you wanna head in. Do you wanna go to the pool today? I think we could go before dinner, change real quick, eat, and then go back to the room, yeah?” Chanyeol suggested.

“That sounds fun.”

“Then let’s get going, I heard that the pool is extra cool around sunset, and we’ve still got a lot of snowboarding to do. We haven’t been to the north side of the mountain at all yet, and the trails look alright.” Chanyeol released Baekhyun and moved to stand up, pulling his phone out of his pocket to check the time. Baekhyun did not stand up; he had his eyes closed, as if he were still soaking in the sun. Chanyeol could not resist the urge to take a picture of him, so he opened his camera and snapped a picture. After putting his phone away with a smirk, Chanyeol pulled on Baekhyun’s hand to make him stand up.

“Baekhyun, c’mon, let’s go,” Chanyeol exaggerated each word, whining at his friend.

“Alright, alright, I’m getting up,” Baekhyun said while squinting up at the red-head. The pair recollected their snowboards, strapped in, and headed towards a ski lift that would lead them to the north end of the mountain.

~

“Should this be our last run?” Chanyeol asked.

“Yeah sure, I’d be good with heading in now, I’m getting cold anyways and I think you succeeded in shoving enough snow down my coat that my under-shirt is basically soaked,” Baekhyun replied while giving Chanyeol a look. Chanyeol smirked in return, but his expression was hidden by his mask.

“You’re not so innocent of throwing snow around. Would you rather me get even with you in a different way? ” The red-head asked in a mischievous tone.

“Yeah, I can think of a dozen better ways.”

“Like what?”

“This,” Baekhyun said before winding up his arm and hitting Chanyeol squarely in the butt, and then sending himself down the slope.

“Byun Baekhyun! You’re gonna pay for that!” Chanyeol yelled, shocked that Baekhyun had smacked his ass for the second day in a row. He got himself going down the slope too, only wanting to catch up with Baekhyun and get his payback. He weaved around the run, enjoying the wind in his face and the sound of his snowboard grinding into the hard-packed snow of the mountain. Chanyeol leaned forward and picked up speed as he spotted Baekhyun near the bottom of the run. He moved towards the outer edge of the run, crouching to gather the powdery snow in his hand- perfect for making a snowball. He packed it tight as he continued to fly down the run, trusting the muscle memory of his body to keep him steady.

Baekhyun was slowing down at the bottom of the run as Chanyeol approached him. “Baekhyun!” He yelled as he aimed the snowball at his friend. He launched the snowball from his hand, hoping it would hit its target. It did. Baekhyun turned around when Chanyeol called his name just in time to be hit in the face with the snowball, causing him to fall over. The red-head came to a stop next to Baekhyun, laughing so hard he had to lift his goggles, pull down his face mask, and support himself with his hands on his knees.

“Nice shot, asshole,” Baekhyun mumbled as he rolled onto his back, arms stretched out on his sides.

“I told you you’d pay for it,” Chanyeol said, still laughing.

“Yeah, yeah, now help me up.”

The red-head held out his hand for his friend to take. Baekhyun, however, had other plans. He yanked on Chanyeol’s hand, causing him to fall face first in the snow. Now Baekhyun was laughing, too.

“Very clever, Baekhyun,” Chanyeol said as he rolled over onto his back too. The pair lay like that for a few moments, Baekhyun trying to pick the snow from his collar. The red-head eventually sat up and gave a content sigh.

“Okay, let’s actually head in now,” Chanyeol said as he reached for his bindings.

“Pool time?” Baekhyun asked.

“Pool time,” Chanyeol confirmed.

They walked in the general direction of the Ritz Carlton, dragging their snowboards behind them as they talked about the day, praising each other for handling harder trails and big jumps well. They dropped their things off in their locker and headed up to their rooms to change. Chanyeol put his hand on the back of Baekhyun’s neck as they waited for the lift to arrive, suddenly remembered the events of the morning, and felt his heart thump in his chest. He would have liked to talk more with Baekhyun about what had happened, but he didn’t know when would be a good time to bring it up. _Maybe not at the pool… Dinner? Definitely not now_. The “ding” of the lift brought Chanyeol out of his thoughts; he retracted his hand as the two headed towards their room.

The red-head contemplated other things as he changed out of his snowboarding gear. _If Baekhyun said he liked it when I kissed him, then why hasn’t be been touchy with me like I’ve been with him? Is there something more to this? Ah, who am I kidding? It’s probably nothing…_ But he wasn’t convinced. Chanyeol could see that the sun was close to setting as the pair re-entered the lobby, remembering how to get to the pool from what Spencer had told them earlier that morning. He was grateful that his mood had improved since the morning. Chanyeol was actually very grateful that the day had only gone upwards since the morning. He still had a million unanswered questions, but they were taking baby steps for now.

Chanyeol let out a sigh he didn’t know he was holding when they exited the building and saw that the pool was clear of any other people. Why he felt so relieved to be alone, he did not know. The air was only slightly colder, but there was no wind, so he was quite comfortable standing outside in only sweatpants, a hoodie, and boots. Steam was slowly rising from the pool water, the surface calm and perfect, like glass. The enchantment of the mirage was broken when Baekhyun (who had taken off his outer-wear without Chanyeol noticing) ran directly towards the center and jumped in, creating a splash that reached the pool deck. He emerged from the water, pushed his hair back, and laughed as he called for Chanyeol to join him. The red-head’s competitive spirit got the better of him as he too ran towards the pool, but did a front flip and landed on Baekhyun’s left, creating a splash equally as big.

“Nice one!” Baekhyun exclaimed as he paddled backwards to the shallow end of the pool. Chanyeol pushed his red hair out of his eyes, smiling as he did so. He joined Baekhyun near the shallow end, exaggerating his kicks and making white-water.

“This is so nice,” Chanyeol commented as he rolled over onto his back and looked up into the deep blue sky. There were a few clouds rolling in, and there were warmer hues present towards the west where the sun was setting. He lifted his arms above the surface of the water and watched steam rise from his skin and escape into the winter air before disappearing completely. He heard the water move and looked for the sound, seeing Baekhyun push himself out of the water, and then jump back in near Chanyeol.

“INCOMING!” Baekhyun yelled as he launched himself from the edge of the pool deck. Chanyeol flailed as he tried to move out of the way, and just barely avoided getting jumped on by his friend.

“Baekhyun! Why you-” Chanyeol muttered as he pushed off the bottom of the pool towards Baekhyun. “Watch it, next time!” He wasn’t mad at all, he just wanted to pester the darker-haired. He splashed water at Baekhyun, who did the same back with a snigger. They played around like that for a while, fighting only in a way that close friends do. The sun was well on its way towards setting before they reached a truce and moved towards the shallow end of the pool again. Chanyeol tucked his knees up when the depth came to three feet as he wanted to keep his shoulders under the warm water. He sat on the bench that wrapped around the shallow end, resting back against the pool wall. Baekhyun eventually sat next to him, and they stared at the pink sky as the sun continued to vanish.

Chanyeol put his left arm around Baekhyun’s shoulders and said, “I’m glad we’re here, Baekhyun. I’m glad you’re here.”

“It’s nice,” Baekhyun replied as he laid his head on the red-head’s shoulder.

In his calmed state of mind, Chanyeol found the courage to ask Baekhyun his burning questions. “What are we, Baekhyun? What am I to you?”

“Huh?” Baekhyun lifted his head.

“I think we still need to talk more about what happened this morning between us,” Chanyeol fixed his eyes on the golden horizon. “When I- you know…”

“I… suppose we do. I don’t know what to say, though.” Baekhyun admitted.

“Well, how did you feel about it? I know I asked you this before we went snowboarding, but I’m just really confused right now.”

Baekhyun sighed before answering, which was totally not helping Chanyeol’s rising anxiety. “Okay, like I said this morning, I liked it. I liked it when you kissed me, a lot. I… I think I like it more than I’m letting on, to be honest. I’m really confused too because you’re my best friend, Chanyeol, but you also make me feel things that aren’t normal amongst friends, you know? I don’t know how to act around you anymore. The things we normally do together don’t feel normal anymore. I don’t know how to answer your questions because I, myself, don’t know what we are. You said you’d wanna try it again, kissing, and I think I want to let you.”

Chanyeol finally turned to look towards Baekhyun, and saw that his face was pink. He didn’t think it was from the warm water. “Really?” He asked with disbelief.

Baekhyun faced him and gave a small nod, sincerity in his eyes. Chanyeol looked back to the sunset and asked another question. “Are you afraid to touch me?”

He saw Baekhyun cock his head to the side out of his peripherals. “What do you mean?”

“Well,” Chanyeol wasn’t sure how to vocalize what he was thinking. “You don’t- like- initiate skinship as much with me, so I’m wondering if that has anything to do with all this… If I’ve made it awkward at all…” The red-head had retracted his arm and was fussing with his fingers under the surface of the water.

“Uhm… no, actually. It’s like I said, I don’t know how to act around you anymore, and I never knew how ‘far’ I could go. I guess I backed off a bit too much. I missed _this_. Being close. With you.”

“Huh, I haven’t really thought if it that way. I just thought I had scared you off. What have you missed, exactly?” Chanyeol felt stupid for asking, but he wasn’t quite on the same page as Baekhyun.

[ Track 10 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CtjNLsGg6e4)

“You really want to know?” Baekhyun asked with a quirk of the eyebrow.

“Yes?” Chanyeol was becoming more confused. _What does that mean?_

In one swift motion, however, Baekhyun was straddling Chanyeol, hands firmly planted on the edge of the deck over the red-head’s shoulders. _Oh_. Chanyeol couldn’t really argue with that. His hands moved on their own toward’s Baekhyun’s hips, fingers gliding over the waistband of his swim trunks.

“Do I have to explain anything else?” Baekhyun asked, steam rising from his body.

“Just why you’re talking at me instead of kissing me,” Chanyeol muttered before leaning forward and catching Baekhyun in a deep kiss, eyes fluttering closed. His left hand moved to the small of Baekhyun’s back, keeping him close; right hand shifting to Baekhyun’s thigh, moving gradually up, up, up. Chanyeol tilted his head to right as the dark-haired leaned closer still. He wasn’t sure if he was surprised that Baekhyun was a good kisser. Maybe a small part of him had expected it already. It wasn’t like kissing another guy was any different than kissing a girl. The intensity and eagerness with which Baekhyun kissed him assured this. It felt just right, if not better than any other times previously kissing someone. Baekhyun trailed his fingers down Chanyeol’s chest, and were about to go to work on the drawstring of his swim trunks before the latter broke the kiss with a chuckle, gripping Baekhyun’s wrist to stop his hand.

“Woah there, eager beaver. Not in such a public place,” Chanyeol felt smug as he held Baekhyun steady.

“Did you really just make a Beaver Creek pun? You mood killer,” Baekhyun sounded breathless.

“I beg to differ, but it’s almost time for dinner… as much as I’d enjoy this full-course meal in front of me,” The red-head released Baekhyun’s wrist, who folded his arms with a pout. He finally gave in after the pair shared a look, and got off of Chanyeol’s lap before stepping onto the pool deck.

“You owe me, Park,” Baekhyun said with a pointed finger as he grabbed towels for the two of them.

“Alright, Baekhyun,” Chanyeol smiled, not sure what his friend had in his mind.

They dried off and headed back into the hotel, returning to their room. Chanyeol was very relieved that he stopped Baekhyun’s actions when he did, because the twisting of his stomach and the heat in his gut would have become a _big problem_ that he did not have the energy to deal with at the moment. He kept taking peeks at Baekhyun, who was working on drying his hair. When they arrived at their room, they quickly changed into formally-casual clothes, and then headed back downstairs for their dinner reservation.

~

Walking back to their room should not have been such a chore, but alcohol makes Baekhyun a lot more touchy and distracted, and Chanyeol wasn’t all too focused either. He was focusing on two things: don’t try to break into someone else’s room, and don’t let Baekhyun wander off. (There were actually three things, if you count trying to prevent Baekhyun from untucking your shirt and sticking his hands up your chest, but getting both of them to the room was the priority.)

The pair got into their room without any problems. Baekhyun immediately removed his blazer, complaining that it was too hot in the room, and stayed in the entryway to remove his shoes. Chanyeol strode into the bedroom to change into more comfortable clothes and get some water for both himself and his friend. He put on a tank-top and a pair of joggers before pulling two water bottles out of the mini-fridge, thankful that the cleaning staff had re-stocked for them. Not feeling like laying in bed just yet, Chanyeol decided to stretch out on the couch in the “living room” and watch something on the TV. By the time he had situated himself and put on an interesting show about outer space, Baekhyun emerged from the bedroom in his pajamas and walked towards the couch to join Chanyeol.

The dark-haired took a sip of his own water bottle, set it down on the coffee table in front of the couch, and moved Chanyeol’s legs to sit down. There certainly was enough room on the L-shaped couch for both of them to stretch out comfortably, but Baekhyun disregarded this; he had other plans for the evening.

“Ey, Baekhyun, gimme some room. There’s a whole other side of the couch you can sit on, move over there,” Chanyeol grumbled.

“I wanna sit here though,” Baekhyun argued.

“But I wanna stretch out, c’mon…” Chanyeol whined with a pout, hoping that would persuade his friend.

“I wanna be close to you. You’re too far away as it is,” Baekhyun also pouted. Chanyeol didn’t know what to do with himself at this point. He wasn’t sure if he was genuinely getting tired, or if the alcohol was taking effect and making him sleepy.

The red-head groaned. “Fine. How do you wanna do this, then?”

The corners of Baekhyun’s mouth slid upwards as he moved Chanyeol’s legs again before laying down directly on top of him, tucking his head under Chanyeol’s chin. “Like this,” He said quietly. The red-head’s arms enveloped him slowly, hands resting on Baekhyun’s exposed lower back where his shirt had come up. The latter had his hands on Chanyeol’s shoulders, fingers dancing across the skin, gliding across the collarbone and back down the arm. Neither of them were paying much attention to the TV show that had once been so entertaining. Now, they only focused on each other.

“You still owe me, Chanyeol,” Baekhyun said after a while.

“What do you mean?” The red-head asked.

“Earlier in the pool when we were kissing. You owe me for cutting me short.”

“Uh, okay. What do you propose, then?” Chanyeol felt his heart thump in his chest. He wondered if Baekhyun could feel it too.

“You can kiss me again. That would be a good start for now,” Baekhyun said, still not picking his head up from the red-head’s chest.

Chanyeol propped himself up by putting his arm behind his head. “You think so?” He said through a growing smile.

“I know so,” Baekhyun said as he finally picked his head up and met Chanyeol’s eyes. The red-head looked to the perfect bow-shape of Baekhyun’s upper lip, appreciating the sharp points that bordered the philtrum. They both leaned closer and suddenly were kissing, and Chanyeol’s hand moved from his own head to the nape of Baekhyun’s neck, fingers running through dark hair. He wanted to do more, but he wasn’t sure what would feel right, kissing his best friend and all. Baekhyun moved to support himself on his forearms, and Chanyeol followed him, sitting up slightly to avoid breaking the kiss for too long. Coming together again, the dark-haired slipped his tongue into Chanyeol’s mouth, surprising him, but not ruining the rhythm of the intimacy. Chanyeol’s right hand moved up Baekhyun’s back, under his t-shirt, feeling the bare skin. The red-head himself felt like he was on fire.

Making the decision to go a step further, Chanyeol broke the kiss and moved down Baekhyun’s neck; the latter willingly tilting his head to give more access. The red-head peppered kisses everywhere before stopping at a spot that caused Baekhyun to softly gasp when his lips made contact. Chanyeol planted a firm kiss there, and worked at the same spot for some time, earning small noises from the dark-haired that meant he was doing something right. He licked over the spot before gently biting, causing Baekhyun to swear in a breathy voice. The red-head kissed the area twice more before backing away to take a look. The skin was a dark red colour, closer to maroon at the center. Baekhyun was blushing deeply, and his lips were parted as he took deep breaths.

“I hope you brought a turtleneck with you,” Chanyeol’s voice was low as he spoke.

Baekhyun only smiled shyly as he pecked Chanyeol on the lips, and leaned back to lay on the couch.

“C’mon, let’s get ready for bed,” The red-head said after collecting himself. Baekhyun followed him into the bedroom, pulling the bed covers back after washing up and cleaning the room a bit. As Chanyeol slipped under the covers next to Baekhyun, he felt a sly smile come on when he noticed the mark on his friend’s neck. _I did that_ , he thought to himself. _He let me do that_. He felt his chest swell, taking a deep breath to calm himself, and then unlocked his phone before leaning into Baekhyun.

Suddenly, Chanyeol had an idea. “Do you wanna go night-boarding tomorrow?” It was something he really wanted to try while they were in Colorado, especially because of the grand scale of Beaver Creek Mountain.

Baekhyun turned to look at the red-head. “Can we?”

“Yeah, I think it would be fun. We haven’t gone snowboarding at night in a while. I don’t know how many runs would be open, but I wanna do it before we leave.”

“Oh, for sure. We should do it! Plus, we get to sleep in now. No more waking up with the sun.”

“It’s a date, then,” Chanyeol said with a small smile. He returned his attention to his phone, but could still see Baekhyun staring at him through his peripherals. The dark-haired, then, reached out and poked Chanyeol’s left cheek where his dimple showed. He turned again to look at Baekhyun on his left.

“What?” The red-head asked.

“I just like your dimple,” Baekhyun replied.

“Uh, thanks,” Chanyeol was a bit fazed, but otherwise felt normal. _What was that for?_ It wasn’t the first time Baekhyun had poked his dimple, but Chanyeol couldn’t remember the last time it _had_ happened. He decided to think nothing of it, and restrained himself from poking the hickey he made on Baekhyun’s neck.

“Okay well,” Chanyeol started with a sigh. “I’m ready for bed when you are.” He sat up to put his phone on the bedside table, and then burrowed under the bed covers. Baekhyun only hummed a response, attention still on a game he was playing on his own phone. Chanyeol was interested too, so he rested his head on his friend’s shoulder and watched the phone screen. He didn’t know what game it was, but he enjoyed observing Baekhyun; the noises of frustration and relief were entertaining, no matter how confusing the game seemed.

[ Track 11 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S-Xm7s9eGxU)

After some time, Chanyeol felt his eyelids drooping; he was struggling to stay awake, so he decided to just allow himself to fall asleep as he was. He slid his arm across Baekhyun’s stomach, got into a more comfortable position, and drifted off to sleep.

~

Waking with a start, Chanyeol was confused. _What is it this time?_ He looked up at the ceiling, but didn’t register the pain in his left arm until it became unbearable; it was Baekhyun, gripping his arm tightly as he twitched quite aggressively in his sleep. _Another nightmare?_ The red-head sat up and pushed the covers down towards the foot of the bed, letting his eyes adjust to the darkness. He tried to pry Baekhyun’s hand from his arm, and instead hold it. He wasn’t sure if he should wake up Baekhyun now or wait until that happened naturally; he just didn’t want Baekhyun to get scared out of his mind again. The dark-haired laid still for a few moments before flinching, causing his knees to tuck up and his face to show a pained expression, brow deeply furrowed. _Okay, that’s enough_. He couldn’t bear seeing Baekhyun like that anymore.

Putting a gentle hand on his friend’s shoulder, Chanyeol spoke out, “Baekhyun, wake up.” He had to repeat himself twice more before Baekhyun jerked awake and immediately sat up, looking bewildered and scared.

“Hey, shhh, it’s okay Baekhyun. You’re alright. It was just a nightmare, alright?” Chanyeol tried to make his voice sound soothing while Baekhyun put his head in between his knees. He was breathing heavily. The red-head reached out and placed his hand on Baekhyun’s back. He could feel his friend take shaky breaths, trying to calm down. Chanyeol peeked at the clock on the bedside table; it showed 3:32am. He moved his attention back to Baekhyun, who sniffled before picking up his head and wiping his eyes.

“Do you want any water? A cold washcloth?” Chanyeol asked. He wanted to support Baekhyun as much as possible.

“Water,” was all Baekhyun said in a small voice.

The red-head quickly grabbed a water bottle and returned to the bed, opening and offering it to his friend. Baekhyun took a sip, keeping his face forward.

“Is there anything else I can do?” Chanyeol asked after Baekhyun placed the water bottle on the bedside table.

“Hold me,” Baekhyun finally turned towards Chanyeol. He looked weary.

The red-head opened his arms as Baekhyun’s arms came around his own waist; he then held the dark-haired close, squeezing tightly enough so that Baekhyun _knew_ it was real. There had been times in the past when Baekhyun would wake up from a nightmare and not know he was conscious. Those were the hardest times. He would not want to be touched- would even flinch away from anyone attempting to comfort him.

“If you ever want to talk about it, Baekhyun, I’m here for you and will listen,” Chanyeol’s voice was low as he spoke.

“I know. Thank you,” Baekhyun rested his head on the red-head’s shoulder. Chanyeol looked out the window and could see a cloudy night sky through the curtains. _What had gone wrong? Why had Baekhyun gotten a nightmare?_ He had hoped that in having the comfort of another person to sleep with, Baekhyun’s mind would have been more kind. This was apparently not the case. But they would keep trying, of course. After some time had passed, Baekhyun’s breathing had evened out and slowed, and he was no longer shaky or tense.

“Are you ready to try and sleep again?” Chanyeol was feeling tired himself. Baekhyun only hummed a response. The red-head slowly leaned backwards until he was laying down, all the while Baekhyun not letting go. He lay his head on Chanyeol’s chest. They felt each other’s heart beats. They became drowsy together. They strayed away from consciousness towards slumber together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yall i have had Mr Blue Sky stuck in my head for 3 days please help its like either that or YMCA is stuck in my head as permanent "elevator music". ive had YMCA as my elevator music since July of 2017 I Am In A Predicament.


	4. Day IV

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter is very late AND very gay
> 
> follow me!!  
> tumblr: freak-ofthe-nation  
> twt: @ayeowa

[ Track 12 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OUutARJgw-g)

In his dreams, the only definite thing was that Chanyeol felt content. He felt relaxed and happy. _He was sitting in a field amongst the flowers, the blushing light of the sky putting a serene hue on the surroundings. Chanyeol was sitting alone, but he did not feel lonely. Rather, he felt the weight of his heart as it fluttered in his chest. It was a good weight. It was real. He looked over his right shoulder and saw a single tree. It stood tall and proud, shading the ground below. Chanyeol’s eyes were drawn to a figure leaning on the trunk. He could not identify this person, but his subconscious knew who they were. The visage of the figure was dark, yet a warm light surrounded them. Chanyeol felt himself smile. He waved to the figure. The figure waved back. The sky lightened as Dawn brushed her rosy fingers dipped in gold across the world._

Chanyeol opened his eyes. He felt a heartwarming sensation bloom in his chest. What had his dream been about? He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to remember. He saw warm, pink colours, and a tree. Nothing more. But he had a feeling of camaraderie. There had been another person in his dream. But who? The answer was closer than he knew.

Chanyeol picked his head up from the pillows, attempting to check the time. It was then that he noticed the lightness of the bedroom, an arm around his torso. He touched the arm, and was aware of Baekhyun’s body flush to his backside. The warmth in his chest replenished. He relaxed, allowing himself to be held. What he did not know was that Baekhyun had already been awake for a while, and that he had spent his time appreciating his closeness to the red-head. It was not often that Chanyeol would allow himself to be held in such a way by Baekhyun; it usually happened when they were sleeping, but even then this position was rare for the two of them. Regardless, they were comfortable.

Chanyeol could feel small breaths on the nape of his neck, confirming just how close Baekhyun was. He stretched out his arms and legs like a cat, feet poking out of the covers. Relaxing again, the red-head slowly shifted to his other side. Baekhyun’s arm remained draped over his waist. Chanyeol was greeted by a very much awake Baekhyun, who gave him a lopsided smirk. He then cupped his friend’s cheek. Looking at him tenderly, he returned the smile. Chanyeol felt slightly incredulous; what luck had befallen him to be placed in a situation as lovely as this? He did not know, but he surely appreciated it.

The red-head peeked at the window, and saw sunlight streaming into the room. They certainly did sleep in. Chanyeol scooted closer and touched his forehead to Baekhyun’s chest, snaking an arm around his waist.

“Did you sleep well?” The dark-haired asked.

“Yeah, what about you? How are you feeling?” Chanyeol’s morning voice was low.

“Better.”

Chanyeol hummed. “That’s good. How long have you been awake?”

“Not too long. Maybe about 20… 30 minutes? It’s nearly 10:30, if you’re wondering.”

Another hum. The red-head closed his eyes and breathed deeply. He felt fingers in his hair, and never really realized how much he liked such a feeling. Silence fell between the pair as they laid in the moment. Chanyeol’s mind was full of pleasing thoughts. Thoughts of Baekhyun. Holding his hand. Playing with his hair. Having meals together. The awkward tension that they had fortunately gotten over. Teasing each other. The kiss they shared not 24 hours ago. Their intimate moment in the pool, and again on the couch last night. The mark Chanyeol made on Baekhyun’s neck. Sharing the same bed, and somehow ending up in each other’s arms each time. The red-head had never felt such an endearment before. He felt like he was on the cusp of discovering something, but he did not know yet what that was. Chanyeol would be surprised when he would soon perceive this as a feeling of love. Be that as it may, he wasn’t quite on the same page as his subconscious yet.

“Are you gonna fall asleep again, Chanyeol?”

“No,” Chanyeol replied sleepily.

“Right,” Baekhyun said through a smile.

“I’m awake, I swear. What do you want to do today?” Chanyeol asked as Baekhyun rolled onto his back. The red-head rested his head on the latter’s chest and held his tiny waist.

“Dunno,” The dark-haired replied. “We could go into the actual city, like get the car and drive around. Maybe buy some snacks at a general store? Go out to lunch and then shopping or exploring?”

“Sounds tempting. I do want to see what lies outside of the mountain… Alright, we should do that.” Chanyeol pat Baekhyun’s hip before re-adjusting and peering out the window. The weather was beautiful again today. He hoped that it would maintain for the whole day.

“Okay. I want to shower, in that case. Totally forgot to do that after dinner yesterday because we were… distracted. Release me, Mr. Park,” Baekhyun tried to move, but was unsuccessful.

“You can’t be rid of me that easily, Baek,” Chanyeol shifted more of his weight on top of Baekhyun. “We can get distracted again, if you want.” He didn’t know where all this friskiness was coming from, but it wasn’t totally unprecedented. Shifting his eyes upwards, the red-head took notice of the hickey he made from last night. The bruise (which was just above Baekhyun’s left collarbone on the sternal head) had changed colour, but faded in intensity. Chanyeol licked his lips and swallowed as his attention moved to Baekhyun’s lips, and then to his eyes. There was a liveliness in those eyes. The red-head hadn’t noticed his friend’s hands creep up his shirt.

“How’s about you distract me _in_ the shower?” The dark-haired quirked his eyebrow and flashed a smirk. Chanyeol’s lips were parted. He felt his heart hammer in his chest. Baekhyun’s hands were firm on his waist. The pair wasted no time detangling from the bedsheets and moving into the bathroom. They silently agreed on brushing their teeth before undressing and cranking the hot water.

Before opening the shower door, Chanyeol turned to his friend and asked, “This is okay… right? You’re okay with this?”

“Yes,” Baekhyun immediately replied, anxious to get on with whatever they were gonna do. He continued, though, after seeing Chanyeol’s unsatisfied visage. “I’m okay with whatever goes on between us in this shower.”

Chanyeol liked the confidence with which he spoke. That meant that _something_ would definitely happen. He became more excited as he opened the shower door, allowing Baekhyun to enter first. Taking one last look at the fogged up mirror, seeing a blurry figure that resembled himself, Chanyeol stepped into the shower as well.

Baekhyun had already wet his hair and was lathering in shampoo by the time Chanyeol joined him. He faced away from the stream of water, tipping his head back and closing his eyes to rinse the suds out of his dark hair. Chanyeol watched the bubbles glide down Baekhyun’s petite body with anticipation. He raked his eyes up and down several times, lingering on the dip in his lower back, the swell of his ass, narrow hips, and sweet thighs… amongst _other_ things. The dark-haired opened his eyes and moved out of the water, allowing Chanyeol to take his place. The red-head quickly wet and washed his vibrant hair, taking care to not get soap in his eyes; he was becoming increasingly desperate to not miss a single sight of the one before him. Squeezing a generous amount of body wash into his hand, Baekhyun quickly rubbed his hands together and transferred the suds onto his arms.

“Me too,” Chanyeol said as he held out his own arms. The dark-haired looked up at him through the steam with a sly smile as he squeezed more body wash onto Chanyeol’s arms. He pulled the red-head out of the stream of water and rubbed the soap over the his long arms. Baekhyun slowly worked his hands upwards until reaching the top of Chanyeol’s shoulders, and then moved his hands together over his chest. Spreading the soap downwards, the dark-haired glided his hands over the other’s abs; Chanyeol’s own hands came up to hold Baekhyun’s waist.

“You’ve got such a nice body, you know that?” Baekhyun asked.

Chanyeol felt a twist in his gut. “You’re well off, too, man. I love your petite figure. You’ve got it all, Baekhyun. I think you’re charming… like this.” He wasn’t filtering his words, and as he spoke, his hands had drifted down Baekhyun’s waist, past his hips, and were steady on the curvature of his thighs.

“You think so?” The dark-haired asked as he pushed Chanyeol back into the water stream. He glided his hands up and down the red-head’s abs several times before retracting and rubbing his own arms and body to be rid of all the suds. Chanyeol pushed his wet hair back out of his eyes. He kind of liked the way Baekhyun pushed him around, but at the same time he wanted to get more handsy and presiding.

“Is it okay if I kiss you?” He asked.

“Yes.”

[ Track 13 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4sR7sW7Xkpw)

Chanyeol cupped Baekhyun’s face and bent down to press their lips together. They moved together smoothly, thanks to their wet skin. Becoming more confident, Chanyeol bit down on Baekhyun’s lip and backed the latter against the shower wall. He put his hands on the tiles above Baekhyun’s shoulders, pressing his body flush to the other. The kiss was broken when Baekhyun inhaled sharply, causing both to look down. Chanyeol had only placed his left knee in between Baekhyun’s thighs, but had brushed against his dick in the process, sending a ripple of surprise and pleasure through the latter’s body.

“You like that?” Chanyeol asked with raised eyebrows. He realized that he would have to learn what Baekhyun enjoyed during intimate moments like these, and Baekhyun would have to do the same, if they were to continue on this new path of discovery. He was ready for the challenge, though.

The dark-haired only nodded in response, lips parted and eyes longing. Pushing red hair back and then grabbing a fistful, Baekhyun brought their lips together again. The kiss was more needy than previous ones. Chanyeol swiped his tongue across the other’s bottom lip before sliding it into his mouth. With his eyes fluttering closed, the red-head cocked his head to the right and moved everso closer. Baekhyun breathed heavily, causing him to tighten his grip on Chanyeol’s hair. Chanyeol, in turn, moaned softly before locking eyes with the dark-haired.

“You like that?” Baekhyun parroted. “Hair pulling is a thing for you?” He smirked.

“Guess so,” Chanyeol had never acknowledged this before, but that would explain why he would do things on purpose that would cause him to get scolded, all to have a piece of his hair pulled. He realized then that he also really liked it whenever Baekhyun would tug a piece of his hair randomly during the day. It was not a sensation that he had experienced often enough in intimate moments for him to realized that he liked it… a lot.

“Noted,” Baekhyun muttered before pulling the red hair again and latching onto Chanyeol’s neck. He pressed several kisses into the skin, relishing in the clean smell. Baekhyun then did something surprising and licked away the water droplets on Chanyeol’s long neck. He moved down to sharp collar bones and did the same actions, trailing kisses and sucking at the skin along the way. Chanyeol was definitely getting hard now, and that would have to be dealt with soon. Baekhyun found a spot at the junction between the neck and the shoulder that made Chanyeol gasp, so he focused the attention of his lips there for several moments. Baekhyun was more of a biter than a kisser when it came to hickeys; Chanyeol noted this as he sharply inhaled after a particularly keen bite came from Baekhyun’s mouth.

The red-head shifted his footing, causing Baekhyun to moan aloud and rest his forehead on Chanyeol’s chest. He reached up and put his arms around Chanyeol’s shoulders before taking a deep breath. He looked up at the red-head and made an impatient noise. Chanyeol was wondering what was going on inside his head.

“Can’t reach. Come down here,” Baekhyun stopped fussing, and pushed himself away from the wall. Chanyeol moved backwards as he moved forward. The dark-haired pushed on his chest firmly with a pout, making him sit down on the shower bench before straddling his thighs.

“Much better,” Baekhyun said with a smirk and leaned into Chanyeol. The red-head looked up in awe as his hands gravitated to the other’s ass. This was something he had been anticipating. As Baekhyun kissed him deeply, Chanyeol adjusted his hold, enjoying the noises that Baekhyun made with each slight shift of his grip. He knew that Baekhyun was a butt kind of guy, but he never knew _how much_. Like he previously decided, though, he was up to this challenge of discovery.

Baekhyun let out a soft moan as the red-head squeezed the plush skin, and could feel his own erection twitch. Chanyeol was feeling hot all over, and it wasn’t just from the heat of the shower.

“Do you like it when I touch you there?” Chanyeol asked, eyes dancing around the blissed out expression on his friend’s face.

Baekhyun bit his lip and nodded. The red-head spread his legs and pulled him closer, making him hiss as they came together. He liked the noises Baekhyun was making, all because of _him_. The dark-haired ground his hips down, seeking friction, and Chanyeol tipped his head back against the wall with an expression of genuine ecstasy. This gave Baekhyun boundless access to his neck as he leaned close, gripping the red-head’s biceps, and trailed sloppy kisses along his jawline. He worked at a spot near the corner of Chanyeol’s jaw, biting and sucking and making obscene noises. The red-head felt like a coil of copper pulled taught; the heat in his body was gathering and building.

After Baekhyun pulled away, Chanyeol reached up and trailed his thumb along those perfect lips. “Tell me what you want,” Chanyeol said.

“Touch me,” Baekhyun replied.

“Where?”

“You know where.”

Chanyeol’s heart leapt in his chest. He didn’t have to think of what to do next, but he did hesitate. The dark-haired noticed this, and took Chanyeol’s hand in his own, keeping their eyes locked. Chanyeol allowed his hand to be led to the space between their bodies; he could feel the heat in his gut shift upwards to his face. Was he embarrassed? Not exactly. Chanyeol was, more or less, nervous that he would do something wrong, thus ruining the moment. He knew _what_ to do, but he didn’t know _how_. He trusted Baekhyun to guide him more than he trusted himself. As soon as his hand made contact and he saw Baekhyun’s expression change to one of pleasure and ardour, the red-head regained his lost confidence.

Baekhyun let out a sigh that almost sounded relieved, and bit his bottom lip. He leaned even closer to gain more friction, giving that much to Chanyeol as well. Chanyeol, surprisingly was spurred on and turned on even more by the reactions of his friend without having to be touched that much. After capturing his lips in a kiss, though, Baekhyun reached between them and took hold of Chanyeol’s hardened dick. The red-head swore aloud, voice laced with desire. He couldn’t believe how incredibly aroused he was, and couldn’t think of a time where he ever felt like this before.

Based off of the noises he was making, Chanyeol didn’t think he would last much longer; he made the same assumption about Baekhyun as they both picked up the pace, chasing their orgasms to the end. The dark-haired put his forehead on Chanyeol’s shoulder and his breath hitched in his throat.

“Look at me, babe,” Chanyeol’s voice almost sounded pleading. He pushed on Baekhyun’s shoulder to look at his face. His eyebrows were knit in pleasure, lips shiny and swollen. His eyes fluttered closed as he tipped his head back before shuddering with a groan. He came all over Chanyeol’s fist that was still working up and down his length, and Chanyeol released his load soon after, simply from seeing Baekhyun’s reaction. The dark-haired slumped forward onto Chanyeol, hooking his arms around broad shoulders. They stayed like that for what felt like ages, unmoving, connected, and secure.

“Let’s get cleaned up, Baekhyun,” Chanyeol finally murmured.

Baekhyun slowly stood up, legs still shaky. Chanyeol stayed close to support him, smiling softly in the afterglow. He put his hands on Baekhyun’s shoulders, and helped rinse the cum off his body. The red-head gave his friend a firm squeeze of the traps before rubbing water down his back, making sure he was clean. He reached around Baekhyun to turn off the water, but was caught up in a sudden hug by the dark-haired. This embrace was not full of lust or desire like previously, but rather tenderness.

Chanyeol felt that he should say something, but no words came. He instead held Baekhyun, the pair standing under the stream of hot water. The red-head eventually turned off the water, and the steam hung in the air.

“That was nice,” Baekhyun said in a small voice as he slowly pulled back, meeting eyes with the red-head. Chanyeol nodded and smiled while placing two fingers under his friend’s chin, gently tipping his head up. He leaned down and pressed a kiss to the other’s lips before releasing him. They exited the shower, careful not to slip on the sleek granite tiles that made up the floor. Wrapping a towel around his hips and entering the bedroom, Chanyeol saw that the clock showed 11:22am. _Where we in there for that long?_ He then felt his stomach grumble as he changed into jeans, a long sleeve shirt, and a hoodie. _Guess it’s time for breakfast. Brunch?_

“Grab all the stuff you need, we’ll just head out after we eat, okay?” Chanyeol said as he rubbed the towel against his wet hair.

“Okay.” Baekhyun said as he shoved his foot into his boot.

After a few more minutes, the pair headed down to the main floor to eat breakfast, communicating more so in touches and looks rather than vocally. Chanyeol didn’t feel awkward, but he also didn’t have much to say. It seemed Baekhyun felt the same way; a smile lingered on his lips the entire time they ate, and it grew each time he caught Chanyeol’s eye. The dark-haired turned his head to the side, looking out the window. Chanyeol took notice of the growing collection of barely visible love-bites on Baekhyun’s neck, and wondered if any showed on his own skin. A part of him hoped so.

~

“Chanyeol, I’m hungry again.”

“But we ate two hours ago. We ate a lot too. And we just had coffee.”

They hadn’t been out shopping in the “real world” for too long, but they did hit up a lot of different shops, one of them being a cute, Dutch-style cafe.

“That doesn’t make me any less hungry,” Baekhyun retorted as he pouted and shoved his face into the collar of his parka.

“Okay, well, do you want to get snacks at a general store, go to a restaurant around here, or eat back at the mountain?” Chanyeol asked, wanting to maintain Baekhyun’s good mood.

“Well, I do want to shop just a little more. Can we go into this store here and then get snacks before heading back?”

“Yeah, alright.”

Baekhyun perked up instantly before entering an expensive-looking store on the left. Chanyeol shook head head with a chuckle and followed his friend into the store. Said store contained some very expensive brands, all of which the red-head admired. Baekhyun skimmed the racks, and took long looks at the clothing along the walls. He seemed to be looking for something particular, but didn’t ask any of the staff for help.

“What are you looking for, Baek?” Chanyeol asked. He could usually help his friend find pieces that fit his style.

“Just a shirt. A dark-coloured button down, preferably. I was too hot in my blazer yesterday at dinner, remember? So I want something nice and simple, yet tasteful.”

“Very specific. I’ll look over here. Anything I should avoid?”

“Frilly collars and the colour yellow in general,” Baekhyun scrunched his nose before turning around and carding through some shirts on a rack to his right. Chanyeol pulled various shirts out that fit both Baekhyun and his style. He looked around for several more minutes before seeking out his friend, but couldn't find him.

“Baekhyun?” The red-head called into the fitting rooms.

“Yeah? I’m in the last dressing room.” Chanyeol located his voice and strode over to the curtain.

“I’ve got a few shirts, if you wanna try them on.”

“Okay, just send them over the top,” The dark-haired said as he stuck his hand over the curtain railing.

[ Track 14 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ex7RCQRL9Xo)

“Can… Can I see them on you?” Chanyeol didn’t know why he felt awkward asking. He’d just had a completely naked Baekhyun all over him not three hours ago.

“Sure, hold on.” The curtain rustled before being pulled away, revealing Baekhyun in a simple, white button down. The collar was round, rather than pointy, making the dark-haired look much younger. Chanyeol felt himself smile as he mumbled “cute” under his breath.

“Not too sure about this one,” Baekhyun commented with a purse of the lips.

“Well, show me the other ones, then.” Chanyeol sat down on a small sofa against the wall, busying himself with the tassels on a throw pillow. Baekhyun disappeared behind the curtain again, pulled it closed, and was quickly walking out in a silky, deep green shirt. Chanyeol motioned for him to do a spin, letting his eyes move up and down his friend’s figure.

“Better than the white one, I think,” Baekhyun said as he put his hands on his hips.

“Agreed.”

Baekhyun changed again, this time ripping the curtain away and striking a pose that made Chanyeol burst out laughing. This shirt had a very interesting pattern on it, consisting of red, black, and white striped snakes against an outer space print. Definitely Gucci.

“Definitely not,” Chanyeol said in between giggles.

“Aw, why not? Is it too much?” Baekhyun mocked as he stepped onto a platform surrounded by mirrors on three sides, spinning and checking out the shirt.

“A bit. C’mon, show me more,” Chanyeol said excitedly.

Baekhyun showed several more shirts, making the red-head laugh and gawk and sit on the edge of his seat. It was only until Baekhyun emerged wearing an elegant [black button down](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/C5rpoOdU4AE1ksA.jpg) that Chanyeol lost his voice. The shirt lacked a collar, but the diamond-shaped slits running up the sleeves greatly compensated. What really made it enticing was that Baekhyun hadn’t buttoned the top three buttons, putting his dainty collar bones and lovely neck on display. The red-head’s eyes were drawn immediately.

“I like this one,” Baekhyun commented as he spun several times in front of the mirrors.

“Yeah,” Chanyeol agreed in a distant voice. He realized that his mouth was hanging open when the dark-haired met his eyes, and he promptly snapped his jaw closed. _It’s just a shirt, Chanyeol. Calm down._

“Well, are you gonna buy it?” Chanyeol asked, focusing on keeping his tone even.

“Oh, I don’t know… Should I? I don’t know that it looks very good on me,” Baekhyun put his fingers to his lips in thought, nibbling on his thumb nail. Chanyeol thought he was crazy to say such a thing.

“I’ll buy it for you,” The red-head said, standing up from the sofa. “I think you look good.”

Baekhyun faced him, looking up with a pensive expression. “You think so?”

“Of course, you’ll have to be careful with these when you wash it,” Chanyeol meant the slits in the arms as he touched the exposed skin of Baekhyun’s shoulder, making the dark-haired shiver at the contact. “But I think it’s worth it.” He whispered as he dropped his hand and returned to the couch, crossing his legs in a figure-four shape with a smirk.

Baekhyun did a 360 degree turn once more in front of the mirrors before shrugging and returning to the dressing room, closing the curtain in one clean sweep. Chanyeol let the smirk fall from his lips and busied himself on his phone as he waited for Baekhyun to return. When the dark-haired finally returned, he held out the black shirt for Chanyeol to take, and he almost forgot that he had offered to buy it. It was an impulse move purely for selfish reasons, but the red-head found he didn’t mind after all.

He handed the shopping bag to Baekhyun as they exited the store, and headed towards the car to drop off the rest of their shopping bags before going into a general store. They both picked up several different snacks and drinks. Chanyeol was thinking of buying a small novel that his sister had recommended to him when Baekhyun said that he would pay for his things and wait in the car. The red-head dropped the book into his basket with a shrug, and was later stopped in an isle, staring but not looking, until he finally focused on what was on the shelves before him: Condoms.

He wasn’t sure that he would need them, but with the pace he and Baekhyun were moving, it was a possibility that they would be necessary. However, he wasn’t planning on making anything happen, he would rather let it happen on its own. Better to be safe than sorry. After wrestling with his thoughts for a few more moments, Chanyeol chose a brand he trusted and dropped the box into his basket. Very luckily, there was a self-checkout spot (getting The Eye from a cashier when buying condoms is never a fun experience), so he bought all his things, making sure the condom box was at the bottom of the bag, and joined Baekhyun in the car to head back to the hotel.

The drive back was peaceful and lasted no more than 10 minutes. They had to get the car valeted again, but Chanyeol didn’t mind. The pair waved to Maya at the front desk, and took the lift up to their rom. Once inside, they kicked off their shoes and tossed their shopping bags on the spare bed. Baekhyun threw his new hoodie on, pulled out a snack that he had bought at the general store, and left the bedroom to presumably chill out on the couch in the other room. Quickly, Chanyeol moved the condom box from his bag to the drawer of the bedside table. He had also picked out a small bottle of lube. Just in case. Neither he nor Baekhyun ever opened that drawer before, so he assumed that would be a good and discrete place for them, if they ever were needed.

Chanyeol joined his friend in the other room with food and drink of his own. They hung out for a while, enjoying the company and watching the TV comfortably. After some time, though, they began to tire of the show that was on. Baekhyun had been doing something on his phone, and Chanyeol found himself constantly looking out the window at the mountain. With a tap of his thighs, the red-head stood up, cleaned up for the both of them, and grabbed the new book he bought from the general store. He stretched out on the couch, laying down perpendicular from Baekhyun on the L-shaped piece of furniture. The book was called _IQ_ , and Chanyeol immediately became lost in the storyline. He didn’t know how much time had passed since he started reading, but he was already 23 pages in when he felt something bump his foot, startling him. The red-head peered over the top of his book to see his friend, who had shifted closer towards him, was sitting at his feet, staring at him.

“Chanyeol, I’m bored,” Baekhyun said as he rested his head on the back of the couch.

“What do you want me to do about that?” He spoke into his book.

“I don’t know, entertain me. What are you reading?”

“A book. I thought you were watching TV? Why don’t you facetime Sehun or something? I’m sure he’s dying to hear from us, he only texts me every hour asking, _What are you guys doing? What’s up? Has anything dire happened yet?_ That boy’s nosey as hell.” Chanyeol returned to his book, trying to find the spot he was at before being interrupted.

“That certainly sounds like Sehun.” Baekhyun contemplated as he placed two fingers on his lips. The dark-haired returned his focus to Chanyeol, whose face was covered by the book. The red-head could feel Baekhyun’s eyes on him still, causing him to neglect his reading and look over the top of his book again. Baekhyun looked a little too enticing with his fingers in between his lips, but Chanyeol tried to ignore that.

“What, Baekhyun?” Chanyeol asked after rolling his eyes.

“I’m so _bored_ , Chanyeol,” The dark-haired whined as he slid down the couch in despair.

“I already gave you suggestions, you’ll have to come up with something else to do,” Chanyeol waved him off and returned to his book for a second time. He had barely regained the line of the story when he felt a hand on his knee, making him inhale sharply. Leaning up on his elbows, the red-head looked at Baekhyun again, noticing the change of his demeanor.

“Back off, Baek. What are you doing now?” Chanyeol felt his heart beat faster.

“I want you,” The dark-haired inched closer as he spoke, “to entertain me.”

Chanyeol immediately caught on to what Baekhyun was implying.

As the dark-haired moved closer still, Chanyeol thought of the position he was in. Baekhyun had his left hand planted firmly on the couch cushion in between Chanyeol’s thighs, and had his right hand on Chanyeol’s knee. The red-head took notice of how Baekhyun’s hoodie was sliding off his left shoulder, making him look all the more alluring. He felt intrigued, wondering what was going through his friend’s head at the moment; as much as he was enjoying his book, he was totally on board for whatever Baekhyun had in mind.

Chanyeol bent his knees slightly as he rested the open book on his chest, still hiding his face. “Are you really that bored?” He asked with a quirk of the eyebrow.

“Maybe. Is that book more interesting than me?” Baekhyun’s hands were on Chanyeol’s waist now, fingers touching bare skin ever so slightly.

“Maybe,” Chanyeol replied with a smirk and a blush.

The dark-haired shifted his hands upwards, under Chanyeol’s shirt, feeling all the way up his chest. Chanyeol, in turn, hid his face completely behind the book, sighed deeply, and slammed it closed before tossing it onto the coffee table. Baekhyun moved his hands again, and the red-head broke out in goosebumps.

“If you’re so bored, stop teasing and kiss me,” Chanyeol said in a low voice.

“But this is more fun,” Baekhyun replied with a smirk and a finger on his lips, as if in thought.

“Stop that, it’s distracting,” Chanyeol pulled on Baekhyun’s hand to remove it from his mouth.

“I thought you liked being distracted?”

“You got me there.”

[ Track 15 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s4ITzZh9BPA)

The red-head pulled Baekhyun down with a hand on his neck for a hungry kiss, as if he hadn’t had enough from earlier that morning. As they came together, Chanyeol felt a sense of relief. Baekhyun kissed him with a surprising passion that made him wonder what exactly the dark-haired constituted as “bored”. Chanyeol slid his right hand around the other’s exposed shoulder, causing him to ditch the hoodie soon after. Baekhyun pushed up Chanyeol’s shirt and dragged his hands up and down several times before being pulled down by the collar of his own shirt to be caught up in another kiss. The red-head wanted to draw this out for as long as possible; he felt like he could stay in this position forever, surrounded by everything Baekhyun and nothing more.

The dark-haired pulled at Chanyeol’s shirt again, mumbling something that sounded like, “Take it off,” in between kisses. The red-head obliged, and Baekhyun paused to admire his body, delicate fingers tucking into sweatpants. Chanyeol took in his friend’s face, expression focused, lower lip held in between his teeth.

“I wanna mark you up,” Baekhyun said with hooded eyes.

“Go ahead,” Chanyeol replied, wanting to feel those perfect lips all over him.

Baekhyun settled himself on top of Chanyeol and slowly lowered himself to plant a firm kiss on his lips before moving down his body. Once again, the red-head felt a heat flow through himself. He couldn't believe that someone would ever make him feel like this; it was all so new to Chanyeol, and yet he felt accustomed to it at the same time. And it was all because it was Baekhyun. No one could compare.

The dark-haired pressed his lips to Chanyeol’s hot skin, biting here and there. He was encouraged with each gasp and moan, making him increase the fervor with which he left every mark. As he moved his lips up and down Chanyeol’s neck, the red-head tucked one hand entirely into Baekhyun’s pants, feeling and groping his ass. The dark-haired amplified the intensity and grabbed a handful of Chanyeol’s hair, tugging hard as he worked a mark into the skin next to his adam’s apple. Chanyeol swore breathlessly in return as his back arched, pulling Baekhyun impossibly closer. He felt Baekhyun smirk into his skin at that before the dark-haired pulled away.

“Still bored?” The red-head asked, feeling weightless. He held firmly onto his friend’s waist.

“Less so,” Baekhyun replied, tracing the line of Chanyeol’s collar bone.

“Well,” Chanyeol continued, sitting up and coming close. Their faces were merely inches apart. “We can either stay here and continue this, or start getting ready to go snowboarding. Take your pick.”

“How’s about we delay the night-boarding a bit. I don’t think I’m done just yet.”

“Oh, I think you’re quite finished. It’s my turn now.” He continued to lean forwards, which only made Baekhyun lean backwards until he was laying on his back, their positions switched. The red-head had him caged in, legs straddling hips and hands on each side of his head. As the sunlight of the late afternoon shone into the room, Chanyeol could see colour rush up his friend’s neck and blossom over his cheeks, lips slightly parted in awe. He slipped his hand up Baekhyun’s shirt and rested it on his chest.

“If that’s alright,” The red-head whispered.

“Please,” Baekhyun replied before bringing their lips together.

Chanyeol wondered if they would ever make it out to the mountain that night.

~

An hour later, the pair had eaten dinner and hit the slopes just as the cold hues of the night sky replaced the remaining golden tinge that followed the setting sun. The giant lights of the mountain only slightly drowned out the stars and waxing-gibbous moon that joined Chanyeol and Baekhyun on their nighttime escapade. There was something peaceful about snowboarding at night. Perhaps it was the lack of other people. Perhaps it was the sound of his board grinding into the ice, breaking the enchanting silence that surrounded him. Perhaps it was his increase of confidence around Baekhyun; he was becoming more sure of the steep development of their relationship. Perhaps he just missed feeling normal around Baekhyun. It had been quite some time since Chanyeol felt completely at ease with his friend. His attraction to Baekhyun had seriously interrupted the way the red-head acted for several months, but he hadn’t truly realized this until now. He felt thankful for this vacation. He had finally begun to sort himself out.

They returned to their room after several hours, wanting to snuggle up under the warm covers as soon as possible. They changed out of their snow gear and into pajamas, and Chanyeol pulled the covers over their connected bodies after turning off the light, throwing an arm over Baekhyun’s waist. The latter huddled close and sighed contently. He would have no nightmares that night, feeling secure in the embrace of his dearest love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if yall were unsure, the black shirt i was alluding to is bh's "artificial love" and "white noise" dress shirt bc that shit gets me goin 300 mph. i felt the visual was very important.


	5. Day V

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry its so late, i been gone thru some shit  
> but my dudes its ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) finally ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°) time ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)
> 
> follow me!!  
> tumblr: freak-ofthe-nation  
> twt: @ayeowa

“Chanyeol, wake up.”

The red-head didn’t open his eyes immediately. He wasn’t entirely sure that he was conscious. Perhaps it was just fragments of his forgotten dreams resurfacing. He rolled over onto his side away from the noise in hopes to fall deeper into sleep. But then there was a hand on his shoulder, and he was rolled onto his back. Chanyeol groaned as he put an arm over his eyes, not wanting to wake up just yet.

“Chanyeol,” Baekhyun’s voice called out softly. The mattress shifted as he sat down.

The red-head only hummed in response.

“It’s time to wake up.”

Another groan.

“I called room service, if that’s any incentive. They’ll be here soon.”

The red-head lifted his arm to peek at his friend. “How long have you been awake?” His voice was low and gravelly.

“Long enough to fit in a proper shower and get our breakfast sorted out.”

“What, you showered without me?” Chanyeol joked. “I’m hurt.”

“You’ll be alright. Now get up, I don’t wanna eat alone.”

“Hm, you should come here instead,” The red-head retorted as he grabbed his friend’s arm and pulled him onto the bed. Baekhyun laid down hard with an “oof” as Chanyeol crowded his space. Before he could do anything, though, there was a knock on the door and a muffled “Room service!”

Baekhyun managed to wiggle out of Chanyeol’s hold and trotted over to the door, dark hair flopping around with each step. The red-head eventually pushed himself up and off the bed to help bring in the food. They set up by the couch in the “living room” and enjoyed a breakfast of coffee, toast, eggs, fruit, and bacon.

“So, what’s on the agenda for today?” Baekhyun asked.

“Uh, snowboarding? Why do you ask?” The red-head spoke into his coffee mug with a raised eyebrow. Something about Baekhyun was… different today. He couldn’t pinpoint exactly what, but it was noticeable enough to Chanyeol.

“Just askin’.”

“Right... Did you sleep okay? Sleep through the whole night?”

“Yes, actually. I feel suspiciously refreshed today. Don’t know what that’s all about…”

Chanyeol shrugged his shoulders as a reply and eyed the love bites on Baekhyun’s neck, his hands subconsciously coming up to touch his own neck.

“Well,” The red-head spoke after several moments of silence, replacing his coffee mug on the table. “Let’s get ready, then.”

Baekhyun stood up with him and the pair cleaned themselves up and dressed for the day ahead of them. As they were fetching their snowboards from the locker room, Sehun called- yelling as usual- and demanded to know why neither of them had provided any updates.

 _“You were supposed to call me yesterday! Did anything happen?”_ Only Chanyeol understood specifically what “anything” Sehun was referring to, but he didn’t feel the need to share just yet.

 _“We’ve just been following a daily routine, Sehun. Wake up, eat, snowboard, eat, snowboard, eat, sleep, repeat”_ And a bit of kissing- amongst other things- in between, but Sehun didn’t need to know that right now.

_“If you’re dying for details, the weather is nice and I think I got a little sunburnt two days ago.”_

_“You guys suck. How the hell do you get a sunburn in the winter anyways? Sounds boring.”_

_“If you say so, little bro.”_

Chanyeol sent Sehun a text before storing his phone in the pocket of his snowboarding jacket: _Things with BH are going as you predicted._

~

“Can we have dinner at the hotel restaurant again? It was really nice there,” Baekhyun turned towards Chanyeol as they waited in a line for a ski lift. The red-head shuffled along next to his friend, focused on not running over the skis of the woman in front of him.

“Yeah, I was actually thinking about the same thing. There was something else on the menu that I wanted to try, but was too tempted by the Swordfish last time. Do you think we should call in to the front desk?” Chanyeol asked.

“It wouldn’t hurt…”

“Fair enough.”

After sitting properly on the ski lift, the red-head pulled his phone out of his pocket to make their reservation. He saw a multitude of texts from Sehun, most of which were in all capital letters, that he continued to ignore. He couldn't deal with all that chaotic energy right now. He quickly made the call to the hotel and- returning his phone to his pocket- Chanyeol put his arm on the back of the lift behind Baekhyun’s shoulders, and the latter leaned into the touch.

“You’re having a good time- right, Baekhyun?” Chanyeol didn’t know where this sudden insecurity had come from, but he wanted to sort it out as soon as possible. Plus, the ski lift was a particularly long and slow one, so they would have plenty of time to talk.

“Wh- What do you mean? Of course I’m having a good time, Chanyeol. I feel great today, and this vacation has been nothing but fantastic. Is there… something wrong?” Baekhyun’s tone had hints of confusion.

“No! No, everything’s fine! I was just checking in, I guess. I wanted to make sure that you’re okay with everything that’s been going on recently, you know…” The red-head internally reprimanded himself for making this overly awkward.

“Well,” Baekhyun started. “If it assures you, I don’t want to stop what we’re doing.”

Chanyeol was highly relieved at that. “Okay. That’s good to hear. I feel the same. I guess I just have to sort out some stuff internally.”

“Can I help at all? Talk to me, Chanyeol. I wanna help. Anything I can do to assure you.”

“Alright… It’s hard for me to vocalize this because I haven’t got it all down myself,” The red-head removed his goggles as if it would help him think. He sighed before speaking again. “I like you so much, Baekhyun, that I just don’t know what to do. Like, I do, but at the same time I don’t. And I know that I’m not making sense, but just the fact that this is really happening between us makes me ecstatic and I can’t believe it and I feel so lucky…”

Baekhyun was silent for a while. He started a thought: “So, I suppose w-” But was cut off when the ski lift stopped suddenly. “Oh my god, what is this? Wh- why did it stop? Oh my god! The chair lift stopped! We’re gonna die, Chanyeol, we’re never gonna make it off the lift! We’re gonna be stuck up here forever and we’re gonna starve or freeze to death and-”

“Baekhyun! Calm down, the lift has just stopped, it’s not broken. We’re not gonna die, these kinds of things happen all the time.”

“But how do you know? How many times have you been on a stopped ski lift? Huh? Oh, god, we’re not gonna make it. I can’t even see the top of the lift and- WOW we’re so high up! You think we’d die if we jumped? Are we gonna have to scale the cable? Chanyeol if we don’t make it out alive I want you to know that I-”

“BAEKHYUN! Calm down! It’s okay. I’ve been on a ski lift that’s stopped plenty of times! It’s. Fine. Trust me. I’ve got you. It’ll start moving soon, someone probably lost a ski or fell at the top and they had to stop the lift to help them.” The red-head removed his face mask and put his mitten-covered hands on his friend’s shoulders to steady him. He knew that Baekhyun wasn’t fond of heights or anything like that, but he certainly did not anticipate this kind of reaction.

“Hey, breathe, Baekhyun. Look at me, it’s okay,” Chanyeol removed his mittens and lifted Baekhyun’s goggles. His eyes were teary and terrified.

The dark-haired sniffled and met Chanyeol’s eyes, trying to calm himself down. “Okay,” he mumbled while gripping the arms that held him steady. “I’m okay.”

Just as he finished re-adjusting himself, the ski lift promptly started moving once more. Baekhyun immediately clutched Chanyeol’s arm and didn’t let go until they neared the top of the lift. Chanyeol gave his friend a reassuring smile before they sat down in the snow to strap in.

“Ready to go?” The red-head asked.

“Yeah,” Baekhyun’s voice was small, but his tone was level.

[ Track 16 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VK6-n9SyFlI)

The pair moved down the ski slope at an even pace, enjoying the white, powdery layers that sat upon the hard-packed snow and ice. Chanyeol loved the thrill and the feeling of invincibility as he flew down the run, his eyes becoming teary from the cold wind that crept into his goggles. He felt himself smiling under his face mask as he leaned over and let gravity pull him, increasing his speed as he moved downwards. He saw Baekhyun do the same out of his peripherals, royal blue snow pants making him distinct from the mass of other people moving down the slopes. The sunlight bounced off the snow and the sky was cloudless and there was not a single place Chanyeol would rather be.

When they made it to the bottom of the run and Baekhyun suggested lunch, the red-head readily agreed, and moved to hold Baekhyun’s hand tightly. The dark-haired seemed slightly taken by surprise, but Chanyeol gave him a small but sincere smile as reassurance. As the day passed, Baekhyun seemed to slowly come out of his shell-shocked state. He was actually acting more playful than usual, but Chanyeol didn’t complain. He was just content to see his friend back to normal. As long as Baekhyun was happy…

When he checked the time on his phone, the red-head almost didn’t believe it was already 4:15pm. He had to check his wristwatch as well to be sure he was seeing the right time.

“Well, what do you want to do about it?” Baekhyun asked after hearing Chanyeol muttering about time flying.

“Well, we haven’t gone to those outdoor fireplaces yet… And since we’re having dinner at the hotel tonight, I kinda wanted to check ‘em out before we eat since we’ll be right there anyways…”

“Let’s do it then! They sound like a good time. Sounds romantic…”

 _Did I hear that correctly? Romantic? I guess, but that’s not exactly why I wanted to go…_ Chanyeol was reminded of the weird vibes he got from Baekhyun earlier that morning. _What’s that all about? Stop it, Chanyeol, it’s probably nothing. Just Baekhyun being Baekhyun._ Nevertheless, the red-head couldn’t totally shake off the unusual feeling; he adjusted himself accordingly, though. The pair finished up their time on the mountain with a few more runs down the mountain before skating over towards the Ritz Carlton. All the while, Baekhyun stayed close to Chanyeol.

Upon entering the hotel, they grabbed a quick snack in the lobby- regardless of the fact that they would be going to dinner in a few hours. After heading up to their room and shedding all their layers, Chanyeol claimed the shower, leaving the door ajar if Baekhyun wished to join him. He didn’t, but rather waited until the red-head had cleared out before taking a shower of his own. And he certainly took his time in there. Even after hearing the water turned off, Baekhyun did not emerge from the bathroom for almost 20 minutes. Chanyeol was able to get ready, but still had to style his hair.

When hearing the door open, the red-head turned and started to say “Ah, finally,” but his voiced died out due to Baekhyun’s appearance. He was wearing the new shirt that Chanyeol bought him yesterday, and form-fitting pinstripe dress pants. He was wearing the shirt three buttons deep, and even though it was a simple outfit, he was literally glowing. The red-head blinked several times and felt his mouth go dry before coming back to himself. He strode into the bathroom and focused on styling his hair (pushing it up and off his forehead, creating a comma-shape with his bangs). He spritzed himself with his cologne and re-adjusted his white t-shirt before exiting the bathroom and putting on his shoes and blazer to complete his [ outfit ](https://yeolben.tumblr.com/post/164596030555/from-baby-to-daddy-that-quick) . He noticed that Baekhyun was looking exceptionally put together with his black and white [ loafers ](https://img.fril.jp/img/42135882/m/107867399.jpg?1473162240), and so Chanyeol raked his eyes up and down his friend’s figure several times before saying anything.

“You look stunning, Baekhyun. Seriously…” The red-head commented. He couldn't take his eyes away.

“Thanks. It was a good call on the shirt, don’t you think?” Baekhyun asked while adjusting it slightly.

“Yes, definitely,” Chanyeol stood there staring for who knows how long before checking his wristwatch and suggested going to the [ outdoor fireplaces ](http://www.alpineluxurychalets.com/media/W1siZiIsIjIwMTMvMDcvMjQvMDhfNDVfNThfNzU1X1JpdHo5LmpwZyJdLFsicCIsInRodW1iIiwiOTgweDQ0NSsxNysxNTMiXSxbInAiLCJlbmNvZGUiLCJqcGciLCItcXVhbGl0eSA5MCJdXQ/Ritz9.jpg?sha=4e12af7a) before dinner. Baekhyun nodded his head and grabbed his phone before the pair left. Chanyeol made double sure that he had his phone and the room key with himself. They took the lift down to the lobby and headed in the general direction of the porch. Chanyeol remembered that there was a bar out there, which he didn’t have any complaints about. Honestly, he could use some alcohol right now; he needed to chill out a bit.

When they exited the building, Chanyeol was pleased at the lack of wind and other people. The porch was actually entirely vacant; not even a bartender was present. He and Baekhyun shared a look, shrugged, and sat down on the cushioned wooden chairs in front of the blazing fire. It was insanely warm, and Chanyeol nearly forgot they were outside. He was glad, then, that he had left his parka in the room. It would have proved unnecessary.

The red-head positioned himself in such a way that he could look at Baekhyun and the fire at the same time. He really couldn’t take his eyes off his friend. There was something about him today that was unexplainable. He carried himself in such a way that Chanyeol found alluring. What’s more is that he kept delicately touching his lips with his slender fingers, biting a nail or just holding his fingertip in between his lips. It was a habit that Baekhyun had never been able to break, but Chanyeol never found any problem with it. The red-head caught himself staring so intensely that he had begun to fidget with his hands in his lap.

Some time had passed before a bartender emerged from the building with an apology. She took their orders (both taking a glass of mulled wine to battle the cold), prepared their drinks, and served them both. She mentioned that she would be tending to the inside bar, and to simply press the blue button on the counter of the outside bar for her to return and serve them again.

[ Track 17 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DKCz3pRc6EM)

Chanyeol leaned back into his chair and drank his wine, relishing in the feeling of it sliding down his throat. He felt immediate warmth blossom in his chest, and finally started to relax. The red-head stared into the fire as he eased into the chair. His mind went totally blank, except for a single thought that was acknowledged to be “Baekhyun”. There wasn’t a particular thought in his head, but rather a feeling. As he sat there, unblinking, stationary as stone, his mind began to work on it’s own, and he finally perceived this odd feeling (the one he could not shake off all day) as desire. Yearning. Ardor.

Whether or not it had been truly coming from Baekhyun, or if it was from himself, Chanyeol could not tell. But he knew, then, that he wanted Baekhyun. Deeply.

Chanyeol took another sip of his wine and leaned forward, feeling the heat of the fire on his face. He stood up then to get closer to the flames, and to give him something to do before his thoughts took him too far. He stood there, wine glass in hand, and relished in the way the intensity of the fire seeped into his blazer, t-shirt, skin, his very being. He closed his eyes after taking another sip of wine, feeling a small fire blaze within himself now.

“Kinda weird that there’s no one else out here, huh?” Baekhyun’s voice said near Chanyeol’s left shoulder.

“Yeah, but I like that it’s just us. Don’t you?” The red-head asked as he side-eyed his friend. _It’s been “just us” all week… But today feels different._ He snaked his arm around Baekhyun’s shoulders and pulled him close.

“Yeah,” The dark-haired said quietly.

The pair stayed like that for a while, taking in the scenery, appreciating the warmth from the fire (and from each other), and silently thanking the other hotel residents for not coming out to the fireplaces that evening. Chanyeol eventually finished his wine, and so did Baekhyun. He took his friend’s glass and placed them on the small wooden table in between their chairs. The red-head took his seat again, feeling more tranquil than he had all day.

“Baekhyun, come sit. It’s lonely back here.” Chanyeol raised his arm and made a “come here” motion with his hand.

The dark-haired took steps towards Chanyeol and promptly sat on his lap with a smirk, surprising him. But he did not object- no, not at all. He decided that he liked this side of his friend. Baekhyun was sitting sideways across Chanyeol’s thighs; he placed his right arm around the red-head’s shoulders and the other across his chest, lacing his fingers together. Chanyeol, in turn, put his left arm around Baekhyun’s waist, and rested the other on his knee.

“Consider yourself unlonely,” The dark-haired said in a low voice. His eyes flicked downwards and then back up again before running his tongue over his bottom lip. Chanyeol tightened his grip on Baekhyun’s waist and pulled him closer for a kiss. The latter instinctively arched his back to get even closer. He seemed to be wanting to shift his position, but stayed right where he was, as if he was waiting for permission. This interested Chanyeol; he wrote off a mental note for later.

“You’re great company,” The red-head said after they pulled apart. He wanted very badly to pull Baekhyun to face forward on his lap, to feel those full thighs, those delicate fingers, the smooth skin, perfect lips, and everything else that made up Baekhyun. But he _had_ to wait. He just had to. Desire was building and burning inside and out- much like the flames before him- licking upwards to the sky and feeding off the ample oxygen all around. But Chanyeol had to control himself. And it was agonizing.

“You really like the shirt, huh?” Baekhyun asked with a knowing smirk.

“Yes. I do. It’s a good fit,” Chanyeol trailed his pointer finger from the top of Baekhyun’s sternum to the base, tucked his finger under the fabric of the dress shirt, and lightly tugged before resting his hand on Baekhyun’s thigh. He gave it a squeeze and added, “And you’re a knockout.”

The dark-haired held his lower lip in between his teeth before a large grin split his face, his eyes becoming crescent moons sitting over glowing cheeks that were as rosy as the sunset. He ducked his head for a second and giggled softly, obviously loving the compliment. They held eye contact for a moment, all the while Chanyeol’s heart was hammering away in his chest. After some time, they decided to head inside for dinner. Baekhyun was totally flushed, and Chanyeol assumed he looked similar, but neither seemed to care. Both were ready to get on with the rest of the evening, and whatever it would include.

They were seated at a small booth that was near a corner where two walls of glass came together, giving them a perfect view of the mountain, and plenty of privacy. The restaurant of the hotel was not all too busy- there was a fair amount of other people seated around the place, but it was not at full capacity. Regardless, the pair ordered their drinks quickly in case there was some sort of backup in the kitchen. They decided to split one bottle of wine that they had tried the last time they were at the hotel restaurant. Chanyeol remembered it tasting both sweet and bitter, full-bodied and light, smooth but not slick. It faultlessly added to the mood.

Looking at the menu, Chanyeol remembered the item he wanted to try the last time they were at the restaurant. Baekhyun took a bit longer to decide, but when their waiter came back with their wine, they put in their food orders. When their drinks were poured and the waiter finally left, Chanyeol propped his head up on his right hand and fixed his gaze on Baekhyun. He took a sip of wine and felt the flames vault up again, just as powerful as before, if not more. The red-head stretched out his legs so that they were purposefully slotted in between his friend’s legs; the desire to maintain any kind of contact with Baekhyun was irrepressible.

“How’s the wine? Good choice? I think it’ll go well with both our meals,” Chanyeol said as he shifted in his seat.

“It’s perfect,” Baekhyun commented with a faint smirk. He trailed his middle finger along the rim of the wine glass before peering up at the red-head through hooded eyelids. Chanyeol felt his heart swoop down and around within his chest.

Most of the time that passed at the restaurant was a blur of stolen glances, excellent food, and sensational touches. Sometime after they had finished eating, Baekhyun had moved so that he was sitting just to Chanyeol’s left, rather than across from him. This allowed for more sultry touches and a stronger feeling of closeness that both parties craved. There was one conversation, though, that came up and forced the attention of both Chanyeol and Baekhyun after they had finished their meals, and were both on their second (third, technically) glass of the night.

“Baekhyun,” Chanyeol started, to which the dark-haired gave his full attention to with a dreamy smile. “What was it you were saying on the ski lift today? I just remembered you saying something that seemed kinda important amongst all the chaos spewing from your mouth… I think you were cut off though.”

“Hm? Oh, I don’t really remember. I was just saying whatever came into my head- a bunch of anxious nonsense, to be honest.” The dark-haired propped his elbows up on the table and folded his hands in front of his face, as if to stop himself from saying anything else.

Chanyeol furrowed his brow and placed his fingers on his temples, trying hard to remember. _Anxious nonsense, huh?_ “There was something, though… You said, like, one coherent thought… but I- aha! I _do_ remember! You said something like, ‘If we don’t make it out alive, I want you to know that I-’ but you were cut off.” Chanyeol finally met Baekhyun’s eyes, and the latter seemed a bit more focused than he was previously. “What were you gonna say?”

Baekhyun didn’t say a word. He merely continued to look at Chanyeol, blinking in a strange rhythm, as if trying to convey his thoughts using morse code. The red-head felt time slow as they held eye contact. _Will he tell me the truth?_ Baekhyun reached for his wine glass and took a drink before speaking.

“Look, I was only saying those things because, I don’t know, I thought I was gonna die… Really.” The dark haired made some vague motions with his hands, which he only did when he was mildly drunk.

_Not exactly what I wanted to hear._

“But, whatever I did say… was the truth. I don’t have the mind to lie when I’m in a near-death situation. Now, I know you didn’t get the full thought because I was babbling, but I’m gonna assume this isn’t your first time thinking about it. And I’ll tell you now, Chanyeol, I’ve thought about it too. Kinda wish I hadn’t said it in the first place but…”

“Baekhyun, you’re rambling again,” The red-head interjected, trying to keep his friend on a proper line of thought.

“Right, well, where was I? What was I saying?”

“You were telling me what you meant when you said ‘If we don’t make it out alive, I want you to know that I-’ on the chair lift this morning.”

“Was I? Well anyways, I like you, Chanyeol. So. Much. So much. I think about you more than I admit, in more ways than I dare say. And I don’t think I’ve ever really… felt this way before. And I don’t understand it and it’s a little overwhelming, to be honest, and-” Baekhyun had grabbed Chanyeol’s right hand that was resting on the table and was nervously playing with his fingers. The red-head had placed his left hand on Baekhyun’s bouncing leg to help him calm down.

Just then, their waiter had appeared to take away their plates. He asked the pair what they wanted to do with their bottle of wine. It was a bit more than half-empty.

“If you don’t finish the bottle here,” The waiter said, “We can cork it for you and send it to the front desk where they will send it up to your room, if you so desire.”

Chanyeol replied that it would be best, and thanked their waiter before he left. He returned quickly with the bill, which the red-head paid without actually looking at their total. He had other things to focus on. Baekhyun finished his wine and ran his fingers through his dark hair.

“What do you think about?” The red-head asked. He elaborated when Baekhyun cocked his head to the side in question. “In what ways do you think of me?”

“Oh, I don’t know… fondly? You’re always on my mind, Chanyeol, what do you want me to say?”

 _Sexually._ He was shocked at how blunt his intoxicated mind was, but needed to hear it from Baekhyun himself. His friend just needed a little guidance, that’s all.

“Do you think of me when this happens?” Chanyeol reached around Baekhyun’s waist and pulled him closer in the booth so that they were sitting just next to each other. “When I do this?” He put two fingers under Baekhyun’s chin and turned his head before pecking him softly on the lips. His other hand latched onto Baekhyun’s thigh and was slowly moving up up up. “Am I on your mind?”

“You never leave,” The dark-haired replied with a faint smile that he attempted to hide in the crook of Chanyeol’s neck. It took the red-head a tad too long to make the realization, then, that Baekhyun’s lips were already working a mark into his neck. He cocked his head to the side and bit his lip before hearing a soft and breathy moan escape his own lips. Chanyeol felt Baekhyun shift next to him, trying to swing his leg over to straddle and face Chanyeol.

As much as he wanted it all right now at this moment, he remembered they were indeed in public, and the restaurant was probably quite full at that moment.“Fuck, Baekhyun, hold on a moment, wait until we leave the restaurant or-” But he was cut off when a particularly impatient bite came from his friend’s mouth. It apparently had the desired effect because Chanyeol could actually feel Baekhyun smirk against his skin before pulling away slightly.

“I think about you, Chanyeol, and I want you,” Baekhyun whispered, lips grazing the skin where a stunning red rose was blossoming.

“Wait a bit, then. We can go to the room, yeah? But wait,” Chanyeol said in a low tone.

“Oh, but you know I’m impatient…” Baekhyun’s hands were dancing along the belt around Chanyeol’s waist.

The red-head stopped Baekhyun’s hands from moving any farther and spoke in a stern tone that surprised even himself: “Be-” His other hand moved to squeeze the nape of Baekhyun’s neck, “ _-have._ ” The dark-haired let out a noise that sounded both like a whimper and a moan. Despite the dim lighting of the restaurant, Chanyeol could see he was totally flushed.

Their waiter suddenly appeared, causing both parties to halt and break apart. The red-head retrieved his credit card, and they were finally able to leave. Chanyeol was feeling hot; the fire within him becoming irresistible. He felt the heat crawling up his back and blooming at the nape of his neck, and it was also building in his gut, ready to travel downwards. The pair slid out of the booth, and after looking at Baekhyun once more, Chanyeol grabbed his wrist and pulled him along towards the exit. A surprised noise came from the dark-haired, but Chanyeol paid no mind. He was dead-set on getting to their room before anything drastic happened. An outsider’s view of the pair would be something odd: seeing a tall guy in a blue suit with a determined expression dragging another man with some sort of playful smile to who-knows-where is not exactly faultless. But the red-head was not worrying over that. He was wondering, rather, why the hell the lift was taking so goddamn long to arrive at the lobby.

He looked over to Baekhyun, who was doing his habit of putting his fingers in his mouth again. He had shifted his weight over to one leg, and was shaking the other, visibly as impatient as Chanyeol felt. And within good reason. They had things to get on with, after all. Chanyeol wanted to tell Baekhyun to stop, to cut it out, to pull his hand away and interlock their fingers instead… right after pushing him against the wall, that is. After what felt like ages, the lift had finally arrived with a ‘ding’ that momentarily pulled the red-head out of his thoughts. He moved to stand behind Baekhyun so that the family in the lift could exit. As he did so, he snaked his arm around Baekhyun’s lower back and squeezed his hip as a sort of reminder. Chanyeol felt like he was moving on instinct. He was honestly trying not to think. They both stepped into the lift, Baekhyun pressed their button, and the “door close” button immediately after. He caught Chanyeol’s eye and winked before leaning back against the wall.

Chanyeol moved as the doors closed, muttering a “fuck it”. He pressed his body flush to Baekhyun, cupped his face, and kissed him hard. The dark-haired reacted immediately, as if he had anticipated this moment.

[ Track 18 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VZjp2fezSMk)

Baekhyun’s hands came up and under Chanyeol’s blazer as he arched his back, leaving no room for empty space between their bodies. The red-head bent his knee and put his leg in between Baekhyun’s thighs, able to feel how hard he was through those thin dress pants. _Fucking hell._ They broke apart, both breathing heavily, just as the lift dinged to signify they arrived to their floor. They exited the lift and stumbled towards their hotel room door. Baekhyun moved to stand behind Chanyeol as he searched his pockets for the room key, suddenly not appreciating the fact that it was an actual key instead of a key-card. Chanyeol fumbled with the lock and the door handle, becoming distracted by his friend’s devious hands that were very effectively untucking his shirt. Chanyeol unlocked the door at the same time that the dark-haired pulled the last of his shirt out before moving to his belt buckle.

“ _Fuck,_ Baekhyun, hold _on,_ babe,” The red-head managed as he pushed open their door, the pair basically falling into the hotel room. They both kicked off their shoes eagerly, and peeled their socks off. Chanyeol tossed the key somewhere in the direction of the L-shaped couch before he was yanked downwards by the lapels of his blazer. Baekhyun pressed their lips together hard as he was backed up against the wall. Neither bothered with the lights. They weren’t needed.

“I can’t wait anymore, Chanyeol. Shit, I-” The dark-haired said as they broke apart, hot breath mingling. Chanyeol’s hands flew up to undo the buttons of Baekhyun’s dress shirt. He then let his hands glide down Baekhyun’s figure, slowly, all the while maintaining eye contact. Big hands came into contact with the curve of his ass, a squeeze, a gasp, they traveled down farther. Hands on the sides of his thighs, and suddenly Baekhyun was being lifted up, arms hooked behind the red-head’s neck, and he was slammed against the wall, a shameless moan escaping in the process. _Does Baek like it rough?_ Chanyeol felt Baekhyun’s index finger trace his jawline. His eyes were on Baekhyun’s parted lips, mind thinking only of how they would feel all over his body. In his intoxicated state, he wanted nothing more than to touch and feel everything at once. Their lips came together again quickly, tongues sliding, heads cocked to either side, breath mingling, pressing closer. Always closer. Never close enough.

“Tell me what you want,” Chanyeol whispered as they broke apart.

“This,” Baekhyun grabbed at the red-head’s shirt. “Gone. Bed. Now.”

The sensation Chanyeol felt within himself was electrifying. Still holding Baekhyun up, he entered the bedroom and shuffled towards the spare bed. It was closer anyways, and he just wanted his clothes off as quickly as possible. He dropped Baekhyun onto the bed, his friend bouncing slightly on the mattress. The red-head shed his blazer and pulled his white t-shirt up and over his head. He tossed it somewhere to the right, and refocused his attention on Baekhyun. He put one knee on the bed, and then the other, straddling Baekhyun, and pulled the black dress shirt off his shoulders. As soon as it was gone, Chanyeol pressed his lips to the top of Baekhyun’s left shoulder, and slowly worked his mouth up to the corner of Baekhyun’s jaw.

It was all so fast paced and thrilling, but at the same time it stretched on forever. Baekhyun got his hands on Chanyeol’s belt as the latter kissed a bruise into the skin of his neck. He whipped the belt out of the last loop and tossed it off the bed, sighing in relief as he replaced his hands on the red-head’s biceps. Chanyeol pulled away to see red roses blooming on his friend’s neck, and smiled blissfully.

“Lay back,” Chanyeol mandated with a hand on Baekhyun’s chest.

The dark-haired obeyed, and Chanyeol followed him down. He shifted to forearms and trailed sloppy kisses all the way down Baekhyun’s torso, stopping and giving attention to his nipples after a husky moan came from his lips. The red-head pressed a firm kiss to the dark freckle next to Baekhyun’s navel. He palmed at the hardness of Baekhyun’s crotch, watching his chest rise and fall with each breath. He stopped his lips, though, and squeezed his friend’s hips.

“Baekhyun,” He called out. “Can I…?”

The dark-haired picked up his head, the pair held eye contact, Chanyeol’s silent question hanging in the air. Baekhyun nodded after running his fingers through his hair. The red-head felt a nervous and excited anxiety run through him. He was feeling so many things at once- emotions blurred together thanks to the lust and alcohol swarming around his brain- and he craved them all, absolutely thriving with the way they got his heart going and his mind racing. He did not regret a single thing that had led them to this moment.

After popping the button of Baekhyun’s dress pants and working the zipper down at a purposely slow pace, Chanyeol gripped the waistband with both hands and pulled, the dark-haired wiggling out to make things go quicker.

“No boxers?” The red-head asked with a smirk, surprise threaded in his voice.

“I had a good feeling about tonight,” Baekhyun stated before pulling Chanyeol down for a lax kiss, his hands working at Chanyeol’s pants too. He somehow undid the button and zipper one-handed _and_ without looking. The red-head would have been impressed had not the “holy shit” from Baekhyun distracted him when he finally removed his slacks and boxers.

“What? What is it?” Chanyeol asked, hoping to all higher powers that nothing was wrong- hoping Baekhyun wasn't having any second thoughts.

“Chanyeol, you’re huge,” Baekhyun stated, eyes roaming down the body hovering over him.

“Baek, this isn’t the first time you’ve seen me naked…”

“Yeah, but I’ve never seen you _like this_ before. It’s a whole new perspective. A new angle. Shit…”

“It’s okay, though? This is okay?”

“Yeah- yes. Hell yes. Now, get over here and shut me up.”

“Easier said than done,” Chanyeol replied as he crawled back on top.

And boy, was that the truth.

[ Track 19 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rvi-IcyKhLg)

In under 10 minutes, Baekhyun had become a moaning mess; Chanyeol getting him worked up, teasing him, giving him almost enough, but never quite satisfying him completely. Forget the precome leaking from his own dick, Baekhyun held his full attention. The red-head broke a particularly messy kiss and sat back on Baekhyun’s thighs, giving them a thoughtful squeeze before grabbing hold of the base of his cock. He pumped up and down twice before retracting his hand, spitting in his palm, and replacing it. With that and the precome leaking from the head, Chanyeol was able to apply different pressures and speeds, testing out what things made the dark-haired react in different ways. He twisted his wrist this way and that, brushing his thumb over the slit several times before hearing a whine escape Baekhyun’s mouth. He was spurred on by the noises that were of his own doing.

“ _Fuck-_ just fuck me already. Please, Chanyeol- just- I need to feel something. I need to feel you- _fuck,_ please…” Baekhyun babbled on, whining, pleading, begging for it, and it took all of Chanyeol’s control to not come right then and there. Never in his wettest and wildest dreams had Chanyeol ever envisioned his best friend begging to be fucked. By him. _Fuck._

The red-head nodded and pressed a kiss to Baekhyun’s glistening forehead before leaning towards the bedside table. He opened the drawer and took out the lube and a condom, mentally preparing himself.

Baekhyun looked at Chanyeol with a dazed expression. “I’m not even gonna ask when and where you got those, just please-”

“Baekhyun,” Chanyeol cut him off with a hand on his chest. “It’s okay. Relax, baby. I’ve got you.”

The red-head popped the lid of the lube and coated three digits generously.

“Legs up and spread. It’s gonna be a little cold.”

Baekhyun nodded in response.

Chanyeol moved his hand low, tracing gently around Baekhyun’s hole with just his index finger. He wanted to make this as comfortable as it could be. He would have to go slow, no matter how badly he yearned to speed things up and get going. The dark-haired inhaled sharply at the contact; Chanyeol noticed his breathing pick up, and could feel him trembling.

“Hey, hey,” The red-head whispered as he put his free hand on Baekhyun’s slim waist. “Relax. I’ll go when you’re ready. You let me know, yeah?”

“I’m ready, just go,” Baekhyun insisted.

Chanyeol nodded before slowly pressing his finger in, watching it slowly disappear, knuckle by knuckle. He glanced up at his friend and saw the dark-haired holding his bottom lip between his teeth, brow furrowed. Chanyeol slowly moved it out, and watched Baekhyun’s reaction: his cock twitched, dripping precome onto his belly, and also slightly arched his back. The red-head did not remove his finger completely, but rather pushed it back in, a bit faster this time around. He soon established a rhythm, added a second finger, and then a third soon after. As Baekhyun got more and more worked up, his moans got louder and more frequent. Chanyeol assumed he had hit something sensitive when he heard a whimper leave Baekhyun’s mouth while simultaneously grinding his hips down on Chanyeol’s hand. He gathered Baekhyun was ready.

Chanyeol slipped his fingers out, wiped them on the sheets, and reached for the condom. He silently thanked his past self for thinking logically. As he rolled it on, he gasped at the contact with his dick, as it had gone on completely neglected for the whole evening. He applied a bit more lube to decrease discomfort, but there was only so much he could do with his hands, after all. He leaned down to capture Baekhyun’s lips in a kiss, who had been complaining about the lack of something inside him, whining about wanting to feel full again.

The red-head aligned their hips and said, “Ready?”

After getting a nod of confirmation from the dark-haired, Chanyeol slowly pushed in, and was immediately overwhelmed. The pair moaned in unison, Baekhyun’s voice going higher than Chanyeol’s.

“ _Fuck,_ you’re so tight, oh my _god-_ ” Chanyeol continued to press in, but slowed down as he watched Baekhyun squeeze his eyes shut. It felt like ages, but Chanyeol had finally brought his crotch flush to the backs of Baekhyun’s thighs; the dark-haired was gasping and Chanyeol thought his heart would beat right out of his ribcage.

“Gimme a moment,” Baekhyun managed to say as he pressed his head back into the pillows.

The red-head leaned down again to press a kiss to Baekhyun’s forehead, gently brushing the dark hair out of his eyes. Baekhyun held onto Chanyeol’s biceps, their faces barely an inch apart. Baekhyun’s eyes were glossed over, and his lips were parted and shiny.

“I think you should move now,” Baekhyun mumbled.

Chanyeol nodded and repositioned himself. He slowly pulled out- not completely- and pushed back in. Baekhyun grabbed at the bedsheets and tried to catch his breath. The red-head slowly built up to a steady pace, not wanting to go out too fast because it would be all over too quickly.

Baekhyun yelled out Chanyeol’s name and something that sounded like “fuckrightthere”, so the red-head guessed he had again hit that sweet spot. He purposely screwed up his rhythm to draw it out, a part of him wanting to see how long Baekhyun would last- how long he, himself, would last.

“You’re doing so well, baby,” Chanyeol praised as he slowed his pace again, causing Baekhyun to meet his thrusts with impatience.

“I’m close, Chanyeol. I’m so close. _Fuck_ I feel so full, and you’re so big, jus-” His words died out and turned into a filthy moan laced with swears as the red-head thrust quickly and harder into him, before slowing down again.

“Goddamnit, Chanyeol, _fuck me like you mean it,_ ” The dark-haired mandated.

And that was all Chanyeol needed to hear.

“Alright.”

He grabbed Baekhyun’s left leg and swung it over his right shoulder, giving no warning before picking up his pace again. He probably hit Baekhyun’s prostate with each and every thrust. It was a blur after that; skin on skin, breath mingling, messy kisses, matching moans, bites, cursing, the perfect level of fervor and lust which finally pushed them both over the edge. The dark-haired came hard after Chanyeol finally touched his dick again. He was chanting Chanyeol’s name, along with the word “fuck” as his chest was painted with streaks of white.

One, two more thrusts and the red-head was coming too, Baekhyun still riding out his own orgasm.

Chanyeol put Baekhyun’s leg down and simply stared. The dark-haired was breathing heavily, as if he had just sprint a mile. His arms lay at his sides, eyes closed, sweaty skin making it appear like he was glowing, despite the dimness of the room. Chanyeol leaned down for the third time and pressed his lips to the base of Baekhyun’s throat, before slowly pulling out. The dark-haired winced slightly, and stopped Chanyeol before he could leave to clean up.

“Don’t leave. Stay,” Baekhyun insisted with a surprisingly firm grip on the red-head’s forearm.

“I’m not leaving, babe. I’ve just gotta clean us up. I’m just going into the bathroom real quick. I’ll be back in a sec.”

Chanyeol removed the condom, tied it, and tossed it in the garbage bin before wetting a washcloth and cleaning himself. He rinsed it in the sink with warm water and brought it out to Baekhyun. He gently wiped the sweat from his friend’s face and body, cleared away all the cum, and made sure to wipe away the leftover lube in between Baekhyun’s legs. Chanyeol tossed the soiled cloth back into the bathroom and moved to pick up Baekhyun (who had not yet moved) bridal style. He carefully placed the dark-haired on the other bed and pulled two pairs of sweatpants from the dresser. Baekhyun eventually pulled his pants on, and then pulled back the covers of the bed to burrow under immediately after.

[ Track 20 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lO0tgfQT1hQ)

“Chanyeol, come back to me,” Baekhyun said with a muffled voice, most of his face hidden under the bed-covers.

“I’m here, baby,” The red-head whispered as he slid into the bed.

Chanyeol instantly wrapped his arms around the other, and put most of his weight on top of Baekhyun. The latter, in turn, held Chanyeol’s waist and sighed contently, pressing a kiss onto the skin of his shoulder. The red-head moved down the bed slightly so that he could lay his head on Baekhyun’s chest. Baekhyun’s hand came up to card through the coloured strands.

“How do you feel, Baekhyun?” The red-head asked, becoming a little self-conscious. He was glad that his face was partially hidden.

“I feel… great. Spectacular. It was amazing, Chanyeol. _You’re_ amazing. And I think I- well, words just can’t describe it.”

“You were great too, Baek. No one I would rather be with.”

“How’d you know how to do all that, anyways?” Baekhyun asked, which prompted Chanyeol to pick his head up.

“Well… let’s just say this ain’t my first rodeo, okay?” Chanyeol decided to leave it at that, rather not wanting to share all of his sexual history with the one person he had been lusting after for months.

“Noted.” Baekhyun put his head back down and took a deep breath.

Something was brought to Chanyeol’s attention, and he felt that it was important enough to mention it right away.

“What do we do after this?” The red-head asked.

“What do you mean?”

“Do we… are we- like- together? Do we do this again? Are we a couple now? Like- dating?”

“I think… I like you more than I ever have, and I think I only wanna do this stuff with you,” Baekhyun mumbled. His voice was getting low, a sign that he was falling asleep.

“Do you wanna talk it over tomorrow?”

Baekhyun hummed in response, then said, “I can already tell I’ll be sore tomorrow. Let’s just sleep in again.”

“Okay,” Chanyeol agreed, quite sure that he wouldn’t be waking up in the early morning anyways. He was feeling that post-orgasm fatigue. The red-head nuzzled into Baekhyun’s neck, and his breathing evened out within minutes. Chanyeol willed his mind to go blank, and focused only on the feeling of Baekhyun’s skin beneath his fingertips, Baekhyun’s body against his own, little puffs of breath from that lovely mouth, the beat of his heart. He thought of the level of adoration towards his friend, and decided that they were so much more than friends. They had a much deeper and more profane relationship than even brothers. Baekhyun made him the happiest man in the world, and Chanyeol only wanted to make him happier.

 _You’re in love,_ a small voice said in the back of his head.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tell me why smut is so hard to write i literally cringed every 5 words while writing it but was totally poker-faced while reading it over???????? anyways, enjoy the new chapter, gays  
> again, so sorry for the whole ass month-long delay  
> ps that ending cuddle was inspired by the fact that chanyeol only wants to be the little spoon and he is actually very tiny uwu he just exudes big dick energy all the time


	6. Day VI

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> rip its been A HOT MINUTE anyways i dont know what the hell is going on in here on this day so jusst read this sad 5300 word chapter with a pinch of salt bc i got caught in my feelings when i wrote this so its a bit of a rollercoaster and its a lil MESSY also only one song ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯ have fun
> 
> follow me!!  
> tumblr: freak-ofthe-nation  
> twt: @ayeowa

Chanyeol woke up late, as he expected. He felt well-rested when he opened his eyes; while staring out the window, though, he acknowledged that he absolutely did not want to get out of bed, no matter how refreshed he felt. He felt warm all over, and would have preferred to fall back asleep, if not for the soft puffs of breath ghosting his neck. He shifted slightly and could feel Baekhyun still asleep beside him. They were facing each other, Baekhyun’s head tucked underneath Chanyeol’s chin. While the dark-haired had an arm tucked around Chanyeol’s waist, the red-head had an arm thrown over his friend’s shoulder. Chanyeol found himself softly grazing his fingers across Baekhyun’s shoulder blades and upper back in hopes of gently waking him.

The red-head thought over what he would say to Baekhyun when he did wake up; they were to talk about their standings with each other and their relationship status. Chanyeol believed that nothing bad had come from their intimacies of the previous night, so he was surprisingly calm. He felt a good anxiety. He felt as if a large weight had been lifted from his shoulders. If he were to walk around, it would be with his head held high, and with confidence. _Do I want to date Baekhyun- be boyfriends? Yes. It’s not like we don’t know each other well, and we basically were already dating, just without all the romance._

Chanyeol’s thoughts were interrupted when he felt Baekhyun scoot closer and tighten his arm around the red-head’s waist. The dark-haired drew a long breath in, and slowly exhaled through his nose; the breath swept across Chanyeol’s bare chest and gave him goosebumps. Baekhyun went still again, so Chanyeol assumed he was still asleep. He acknowledged that they were both only wearing joggers, and suddenly his mind was flooded with the images and sensations of last night. _We really did that, huh?_

Several images came all at once. Pleasure was painted across Baekhyun’s face, his expressions threaded with lust. His skin glowing with sweat, laboured breaths interrupting the few coherent words coming from his lovely mouth, Chanyeol’s name being the most frequent word. Hooded eyelids and intense eye-contact. Baekhyun’s tight grip on Chanyeol’s biceps, Chanyeol with an even tighter grip on his hips. Sharp teeth coming in contact with soft skin, along with plush lips leaving marks all over slender thighs. Baekhyun shaking, yet insistent on getting exactly what he desired. Words shared that would only ever be spoken between the pair in moments of pure ecstacy. He wondered what the state of the other bed was. The red-head did his best to clean up; they didn’t even pull back the covers of the spare bed.

Coming back to the present, Chanyeol retracted himself and used his pinkie finger to move Baekhyun’s messy dark hair away from his face. He gently traced the curve of his face, from his temple to the bottom of his chin. _He’s ridiculously beautiful. I hope he knows that he drives me crazy._ Chanyeol wanted to let Baekhyun sleep, but he also wanted to talk to him soon. He settled with gently dragging his fingers up and down his friend’s arm and back, across his shoulders, and through his dark hair until he did wake up.

After Chanyeol had been staring into space for several minutes, thinking of nothing in particular, he felt Baekhyun stir beside him. The dark-haired stretched his limbs in a teasingly obnoxious way, which caused Chanyeol to roll onto his back out of the way. Baekhyun moved with him, let out a small giggle through his nose, and flopped on top of him, resting his cheek on Chanyeol’s chest.

“You awake yet?” The red-head’s voice was low and gravelly.

“Not quite yet,” Baekhyun replied. His voice cracked, but his tone sounded content.

“Okay. When you do wake up, I’d like to talk.”

“...About?”

“Us.”

“You mean about last night?”

“I mean everything… but especially last night.”

“Okay. Then in that case, let’s talk.”

Chanyeol was surprised at Baekhyun’s sudden change of mind.

“You go first,” Baekhyun said. His face was hidden.

“No, you,” The red-head insisted.

“Fine,” Baekhyun picked up his head and looked at Chanyeol. “Was I… your first?” He asked in earnest.

“No,” Chanyeol found it difficult to maintain eye contact, so he let his eyes dance around his friend’s face. “But you were my best,” He added, feeling heat rush up from his chest to his cheeks.

Baekhyun only hummed in response as he shifted off of Chanyeol and rested his head on a pillow, which made Chanyeol nervous, but he stayed calm anyways. “What about you Baek? Have you been with other guys before?” The red-head asked, genuine curiosity laced in his tone.

“No. Just you,” Baekhyun said in a low voice. He was on his side facing Chanyeol, fingers dancing along his arm.

Chanyeol hummed his response. He hoped Baekhyun wasn’t feeling embarrassed at all. “Well you certainly took it well,” Chanyeol added. Perhaps it was an awkward thing to say, but Chanyeol’s been plenty awkward with Baekhyun for a long time.

 _If you love him, you’ll make it easy for both of you and just tell him,_ the voice in Chanyeol’s head chided.

The red-head sat up suddenly, bedsheets pooling in his lap. He rubbed his eyes and sighed, running his fingers through his hair once before staring hard at the wall in front of him.  He thought hard about what he would do next. What he would say. He had to get it out, right now, immediately. He couldn’t keep pretending like this all wasn’t affecting him as much as it truly was. Being with Baekhyun _like this,_ and him not knowing the truth was tearing Chanyeol apart. It wasn’t fair to Baekhyun, either. It’s something long overdue. He had to say it out loud. He had to get it off his chest. He couldn’t hold it in anymore. He would speak it into existence. _He has to know the truth._

“Chanyeol, what’s-” Baekhyun started to say, but was interrupted.

“Baekhyun, I… think I- I’m in love with you.”

Silence.

Chanyeol waited one, two, three heartbeats before looking over his right shoulder at his friend. His crush. His light. His love.

Baekhyun’s outstretched arm was slowly dropping to the bed. His mouth was hanging open, eyes wide, expression shocked, but otherwise unreadable.

Chanyeol didn’t feel nervous anymore. He felt very uneasy.

Baekhyun remained silent.

The red-head turned and positioned himself on Baekhyun’s side, kneeling and sitting back on his feet. He put one hand on Baekhyun’s thigh.

“Say something, please,” Chanyeol pleaded.

Baekhyun suddenly seemed to snap back to reality, and a small smile grew on his lips. He looked into Chanyeol’s eyes, and then down at the bedsheets. His eyes kept shifting around as his smile grew and a blush crept up from his chest to his ears.

“Y- you… you love me?” Baekhyun stuttered quietly. “You really… you’re in love with me? I- really, Chanyeol? I can’t believe you finally- you just said-”

“If you don’t feel the same way, I understand. I just couldn’t keep it down anymore, Baekhyun. It’s been eating away at me for-”

“Chanyeol! Of course I feel the same way!” Baekhyun cut off the red-head with a furious blush across his cheeks. “I love you, too, Chanyeol. I love you. I’ve loved you for what feels like forever.”

[ Track 21 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B9fDHlz_A78)

It was Chanyeol’s turn to blush now. His cheeks were nearly the same colour of his hair, which had faded to a soft, strawberry red. He was laughing then, and he didn’t know why. Chanyeol just couldn’t stop laughing. The sensation just bubbled up inside of him and began to flow out uncontrollably. He felt so relieved, like all of his problems had suddenly faded away; he was no longer trapped. But he felt an odd pain in his chest. He just couldn’t place it. It was becoming more intense, so he put his face in his hands to calm himself down, and was very confused when he felt his wet cheeks. Chanyeol was crying, and he couldn't stop. He was so confused; he should be happy, right?

Baekhyun shifted next to him, cautiously putting an arm around his shoulders. “Hey, hey, Chanyeol, it’s okay. It’s alright,” the dark-haired murmured softly. He was probably equally as confused as Chanyeol was, if not more.

The red-head wiped at his eyes and tried to apologize. “I- I’m s- so- sorry, Baekhyun. I’m _so_ sorry,” Chanyeol managed. He didn’t know why he was apologizing, but he felt it necessary.

“Chanyeol, baby, hey hey hey… what’re you apologizing for? You’ve done nothing wrong, Chanyeol, I’m not- _mad_ at you…”

“I’m sorry for… I don’t know, for waiting so long to _do_ something about… us.” Chanyeol was a bit more composed, but his eyes were still as leaky as a faucet and his heart just hurt. “I never meant to make you feel like I lead you on, or that I ever expected anything from you, and I’ve just wanted this for so long and I didn’t think we’d ever get here, but don’t know what’s wrong with me. I don’t know why I’m fucking sobbing like a child, _I’m sorry,_ Baekhyun. I just love you so much that I felt helpless sometimes because I just couldn’t ruin our friendship like that- it would be _selfish_ and I just couldn’t lose you, Baekhyun… I couldn’t bear it.” Chanyeol would have rather suffered with his unyielding love than confess and potentially lose the one person who knew him better than he did.

“Chanyeol,” Baekhyun said softly. “It’s alright. You have nothing to apologize for. Look at me, baby. I love you just the same. You’ve got to know that I would never lie to you like that.” He gently wiped away the wetness on Chanyeol’s cheeks. Baekhyun continued to talk him down. “There is nothing you could do or say that would make me ever leave you. I could never feel nothing towards you.”

The red-head looked into his friend’s eyes, searching for any hint of insincerity. There was no such thing. Baekhyun was only speaking the truth. While Chanyeol had been in love with his best friend for several months, it had been several years for Baekhyun. Nearly three, to be exact. He had made peace with the fact that Chanyeol would never reciprocate; that he was too oblivious to any of Baekhyun’s advances to put any thought to the fact. Baekhyun made a mental note to tell this to Chanyeol later, if he still had any unreasonable self-doubts. The dark-haired was gently cupping Chanyeol’s face. Chanyeol let out a great sigh, and gently wrapped his hands around Baekhyun’s wrists so that he could hold Baekhyun’s hands.

“Can we order room service again?” Chanyeol asked timidly, voice cracking and sounding congested.

“Yeah, of course,” Baekhyun agreed.

The red-head let out a large sigh of relief and fell backwards into the bedsheets. _Well, that was dramatic._

~

Chanyeol almost fell asleep after eating breakfast, had Baekhyun not forced him into the shower.

“Your dick was up _my_ ass, Chanyeol. That means you do as I say,” The dark-haired joked.

“I don’t think that’s how it works, Baek,” Chanyeol replied.

“Don’t tell me what I don’t know. In the shower, Park.”

“But that doesn’t even make-”

“Shower! Park! Now!”

The red-head put his hands up in surrender and retreated into the bathroom. He smiled to himself as he brushed his teeth and turned the shower on hot. He had a lot of tight muscles that needed relaxing. He looked at himself in the mirror and received a shock.

“Baekhyun! It looks like you beat me up!” Chanyeol yelled out towards his friend. “I’ve been attacked! Why couldn’t you have, like, not bitten me so hard everywhere?!”

“Don’t come at me with all that, Chanyeol,” Baekhyun appeared in the bathroom doorway. “You _told_ me to bite you. And I don’t look any better than you do! I’ve got an indigo galaxy on the insides of my thighs!”

“Prove it!”

“Are you telling me to drop my pants right now? It’s not even noon, Chanyeol.”

“I don’t know what the time of day has anything to do with you stripping. Anyways, I’ve gotta shower, remember? Shoo.”

The dark-haired rolled his eyes and failed to hide the grin that split his face. Chanyeol was also smiling as he entered the shower. Baekhyun joined him after two minutes.

“Can’t stay away, can you?” The red-head joked.

“Shut it, lover boy,” Baekhyun retorted.

“Make me.”

The dark haired pulled Chanyeol down close. Their lips hovered centimeters apart; Chanyeol’s breath hitched. And then Baekhyun pushed Chanyeol into the water stream with a chuckle.

“I deserved that, I suppose?” Chanyeol asked, his wet hair covering his eyes.

“I suppose,” Baekhyun agreed. “But you also deserve this,” he added before pecking Chanyeol on the lips for real. The red-head smiled sweetly. Baekhyun smiled back.

~

The pair agreed to go night-boarding again, since the day was half over by the time they had actually organized themselves. Until then, they decided to go to the village of Beaver Creek. It took them quite a while to find the room key; Chanyeol remembers throwing it at the couch in the main room, but it had somehow ended up underneath the desk hidden amongst the wires. They also bunched up the bedsheets of the spare bed that they had soiled, making sure that the cleaning staff wouldn’t have to touch anything unsanitary.

“I just realized something,” Baekhyun said as the pair sat down at a French-style café in the village close to the ski slopes.

“What’s that?” Chanyeol asked with a raised eyebrow.

“We’re leaving tomorrow! We still have to pack and everything! What the hell, it feels like we got here yesterday.”

“Don’t think of home too quick, looks who’s calling me,” Chanyeol pulled his ringing phone from his pocket and showed the screen to Baekhyun. It was Sehun, of course. The red-head could only guess at what he would ask about. He answered the phone cautiously.

“Hello?” Chanyeol spoke into the phone.

“Chanyeol! It’s been like five days and you’ve told me nothing! What the hell is happening over there!?” Sehun was being his nosey self. _Good to know everything’s normal back at home._

“Sehun, chill out. It’s been like two days, first of all. And second, I don’t have to tell you everything like you’re my daily journal or something.” Chanyeol propped his elbows on the table.

“Yes you do!!! I’m supposed to be your wingman, Chanyeol! It’s no fun if you don’t tell me what’s happening between the two of you.” Sehun was very obviously pouting; the red-head could hear it through the phone.

“I’ll tell you later, Sehun. Now’s not the best time to give you the details.”

“Why? Is he with you right now? What are you guys doing? Please tell me.”

“We’re at a café, trying to enjoy our last day in Beaver Creek. We’re gonna try to pack this afternoon and go night-boarding again tonight. Listen, Sehun, I’ve gotta go. But I’ll call you later and tell you more, okay?”

“... Fine.”

“Bye, Sehun.”

“Bye, Sehun!” Baekhyun yelled from across the table.

“Tell Baekhyun I say hi,” Sehun said before cutting off the call.

The red-head put his phone back into his pocket with a sigh. Baekhyun looked at him quizzically, but before Chanyeol could say anything, a waitress appeared at their table to take their orders. The pair ordered seasonally-flavoured lattes, along with soups and sandwiches. She returned quickly with their drink orders.

“Sehun’s mad that I haven’t told him what we’ve been up to,” Chanyeol finally said after taking a long sip from his latte.

“When you say ‘what we’ve been up to’... what exactly does that mean?” Baekhyun asked.

“I haven’t told him anything about _us_ , if that’s what you’re asking,” Chanyeol lied. He had a feeling that Sehun already knew the happenings anyways.

“Okay. I wouldn’t mind if you did. We don’t exactly have to hide anything from anyone.” Baekhyun made a good point that flicked on a lightbulb in Chanyeol’s head.

“Speaking of which…” Chanyeol started his thought carefully. He put his hands around the coffee mug to steady himself. “We never got to finish our talk from this morning because of my dramatic episode. I’m just gonna cut to the chase because I’ll never get to the point if I’m not blunt right now. Do you… wanna- like- date? Do you wanna be ‘dating’? Like, be boyfriends?” Chanyeol anxiously bounced his leg as he awaited Baekhyun’s answer.

“I’ll be blunt too,” The dark-haired replied. “Yes, I do want that.”

“Great! Now that we’ve got that out of the way, what are we gonna do when we get home? Do we have to… make an announcement? Do we just, like, act like everyone already knows? How the hell do people date? How does this all work, again?” Chanyeol was on the edge of his seat, almost halfway across the table, reaching for reassurance.

“Don’t overthink it, Chanyeol,” Baekhyun put a comforting hand on his arm. “We’ll take it one step at a time. When we get home, we don’t have to tell everyone. We can just… tell people if they ask. Tell our closest friends. How would your parents feel about us together? We can wait on telling them if you’re nervous. Baby steps, yeah?”

The red-head let out a great sigh, nodded, and took another long drink of his latte. “I think my parents will be okay with it. I can’t really think of any reason that our friends wouldn’t be supportive, right? It should all be fine… You’re right, I’m overthinking it.” Chanyeol ruffled his hair.

“Any other inner turmoils I can help with?” Baekhyun asked.

Chanyeol only pouted his lips, asking for a kiss.

Baekhyun gave a sly smile before meeting the red-head halfway across the table and pecking him on the lips. The latter simply smiled after, and rested his head in his hands. Baekhyun returned his smile warmly.

“I wanna take a picture to commemorate this moment,” Chanyeol stated. “Pose with your coffee mug- _don’t_ make is cheesy, Baekhyun- and I’ll just…” He pulled his phone out again and opened his camera. The red-head simply held out his own mug and placed it next to Baekhyun’s while also fitting his friend’s face into the frame. “Perfect,” he said with a grin, wanting the moment to be saved in his memory forever.

“Send it to me, perhaps it’s phone-wallpaper worthy,” Baekhyun said just as their waitress brought their food.

“Let’s tuck in and get going. I wanna go shopping again, or just have a last look around. See the sights before they’re gone, ya know?”

“Well now I’m really sad about leaving.”

“We’ve still got the rest of the day, Baekhyun!”

“I know. Still a downer, though,” The dark-haired shrugged his shoulders and finished his soup.

Chanyeol shrugged his shoulders too.

~

The pair did some last-minute shopping before returning to the Ritz. They, of course, got matching hoodie sweatshirts which had Beaver Creek geotags on the front. What kind of vacation would it be without getting such a thing?

They tried to pack as best as they could, truly. Chanyeol was much quicker than Baekhyun was; the latter kept getting distracted, and just couldn't decide how he wanted to organize his suitcase. Chanyeol, on the other hand, just threw all of his things into his bags, worrying only on the task of getting them closed successfully. After deciding he was mostly done, the red-head headed into the main room to straighten up and (maybe) do some work on his laptop. But he _was_ on vacation, so no pressure. After 40 minutes of not doing anything very productive, Chanyeol returned to the bedroom to check on Baekhyun.

“Oh, Baekhyun! What the hell are you doing? Why are you on the floor? You’ve barely packed anything since I was last in here,” Chanyeol said in an exasperated tone.

“Thanks, Captain Obvious,” Baekhyun retorted from the bedroom floor. He was laying on his back in snow-angel position between the two beds.

Chanyeol moved to stand directly over him, feet on the outsides of Baekhyun’s thighs. “What’s it gonna take for you to focus, Baek?”

“I think I just need a lil’ _break_ ,” The dark-haired responded, still not moving from the floor. He bent his knees and spread his legs invitingly.

Chanyeol cocked his head to the side in question before understanding what his friend had suggested. He glanced quickly at the clock and noted the time. _3:45pm. That’s fine. We have plenty of time to pack, eat dinner, and go out on the mountain tonight. It’s fine…_ He was probably lying to himself, but his body was already moving before he could think anymore. Suddenly he was on his knees, his hands were in Baekhyun’s hair, and his mouth was on Baekhyun’s mouth faster than he himself anticipated. Their lips moved without thought, without remorse. Baekhyun’s hands found their way up under Chanyeol’s shirt, giving him chills.

It was just like the first time. It was so exhilarating, and the red-head just couldn’t get enough. The pair moved together so seamlessly; it was as easy as breathing. Baekhyun pushed Chanyeol’s shirt higher up his torso, and made an impatient noise in the back of his throat, indicating he wanted the material gone. Chanyeol obliged, and tossed the shirt somewhere amongst all of the other articles of clothing that had yet to find their way into a suitcase. As soon as he came back down, Baekhyun’s lips were on his neck, his jaw, anywhere they could reach. Chanyeol bit his lip as pleasure flowed through his body. They broke apart for a moment, staring into his eyes. Chanyeol’s eyes shifted from Baekhyun’s hooded gaze to his sinful lips.

“You make me feel amazing,” Chanyeol stated in between steady breaths. He caught Baekhyun in another deep kiss before his friend could say anything. Chanyeol kissed him desperately, like he needed it to survive. His lips moved to Baekhyun’s jaw, and then slowly down his neck. He tugged down the collar of Baekhyun’s shirt and pressed a kiss to the beauty mark in between his collarbones. The dark-haired let out a breathy curse and arched his back, pressing himself against Chanyeol.

“You know,” The red-head started after gently biting at the space just below Baekhyun’s left ear. “As much as the floor is nice, we’ve got a perfectly good bed to mess up. Just a thought.”

Baekhyun was obviously flushed as he tried to make sense of the words. He seemed a little out of it. Chanyeol totally wasn't feeling smug because it was _his_ doing, or anything. Nothing like that.

“It’s more fun down here, though,” Baekhyun finally replied as he shamelessly ran his hands up Chanyeol’s abs.

“If you say so,” The red-head shrugged. “But you _do_ still have to finish packing.” Even as he spoke, his hands were already creeping up under Baekhyun’s shirt.

“Pack later. Make out now.”

“I’ll make you a deal, Baek. For every five items you pack into your luggage, you get to kiss me. And when you’re done- _actually_ done, not just half done with all your shit thrown around- we can do whatever you want. Deal?” Chanyeol asked.

Baekhyun rested his arm under his head as he pursed his lips in thought. “Fine,” he agreed with a huff.

“Great! Let's get started!” Chanyeol got off of Baekhyun and held out his hand to help his friend sit up. Baekhyun ruffled his dark hair and reached for the small mountain of clothes next to his suitcase. Chanyeol picked out his shirt from the mess and sat on the edge of his bed to put it back on, but Baekhyun had quickly returned, eager to have his part of the bargain fulfilled. He straddled Chanyeol’s legs and grabbed his face to bring their lips together. The dark-haired kissed Chanyeol hard, and then he was gone as soon as he had come, leaving Chanyeol a little jolted. The red-head quickly put his shirt on and leaned back on his hands, watching his friend with an amused smile. Baekhyun was definitely breaking the rules and literally just grabbing articles of clothing, rolling them into strange burrito shapes, and shoving them into his suitcase.

Each time Baekhyun returned to Chanyeol, he got more eager, taking longer and longer to return to his packing. Chanyeol wasn't complaining. After shoving what seemed like the last of his clothes into his suitcase, Baekhyun pounced. He pushed Chanyeol down onto the bed, and crawled on top of him.

“Now that wasn't so bad, was it?” Chanyeol asked, hands already creeping up Baekhyun’s torso under his shirt.

“It was awful. Completely. I don’t know how you people do it, packing everything all at once. It doesn't make sense. How do you know you’ve got everything if you don’t do it periodically? Impractical, is what it is…” Baekhyun trailed off his sentence with a non-committal hand gesture, but when he met Chanyeol’s gaze, the pair burst out into laughter.

“It wasn’t _awful_ , no,” The dark-haired concluded.

“Happy to have helped.”

“You have. Now stop talking and make out with me,” Baekhyun said before leaning down to press an open-mouthed kiss to Chanyeol’s lips. The red-head met him readily with matched enthusiasm. Baekhyun already had a taste, and so he wasted no time slipping his tongue into Chanyeol’s mouth. Chanyeol’s hands were gripping possessively at Baekhyun’s waist, and the dark-haired adored that feeling. Despite being on Cloud 9, he felt grounded, here, with his dearest love. Baekhyun tangled his hands in Chanyeol’s coloured hair, lightly tugging. After receiving pleasured noises from Chanyeol, he pulled a little harder. The red-head responded by pulling Baekhyun closer to himself, his left hand shooting up Baekhyun’s back and spreading out his fingers at the space in between his shoulder blades.

“You gonna take this off, or am I gonna have to ask you twice?” The dark-haired asked, tugging down the collar of Chanyeol’s shirt after they had broken their kiss to breathe.

“You never even asked me once, Baek. You just moaned at me and pushed the hem of my shirt up to my ribs.”

“Well, are you gonna take it off?”

“You first, babe,” Chanyeol responded with a smirk, hands firm on Baekhyun’s thighs that had him caged in still. “I wanna mark you up. Can I do that, baby?”

Baekhyun’s ruling boldness melted away quickly as he felt his head nodding without even thinking about it. Chanyeol gave him a tender smile, sat up, and murmured an “arms up” before gripping the hem of Baekhyun’s shirt. He tossed it off the bed as the pair switched positions. Baekhyun laid back on the pillows, making himself comfortable. He was unsure what to do with his hands, so he ran his fingers through his own hair. Chanyeol was hovering over him now. He gently cupped Baekhyun’s cheeks and kissed his forehead, whispered a “love you” and pressed a firm kiss on Baekhyun’s neck just below his pulse.

The red-head found himself paying particular attention to Baekhyun’s collar bones, ever so enticing. Chanyeol always got hot flashes whenever Baekhyun would wear shirts that exposed his chest. He was just too tempting. He kissed feather-light along the bone, earning small noises from Baekhyun. He nipped at the skin, leading to Baekhyun tangling his fingers in his red hair again. Chanyeol left several faint marks- none of them intense enough to leave an impression lasting more than an hour. But he still loved to hover over Baekhyun, admiring his work, knowing that Baekhyun was really _his_ . That _Chanyeol_ was the only one allowed to do this. That Baekhyun would _let him_ do this. It was something so special, in such an exceptional way.

A string of curse words flowed from Baekhyun’s mouth when Chanyeol’s lips met his nipples. The red-head teased for a bit, purposefully avoiding giving Baekhyun what he wanted. His lips danced all over Baekhyun’s chest, biting, sucking, pressing butterfly kisses everywhere. The dark-haired arched his back again, grinding up, seeking any sort of friction for the growing hardness in his pants.

“Want me to take care of that?” Chanyeol spoke in a low voice.

Baekhyun only whined and nodded, holding his bottom lip in between his teeth.

“Use your words, baby. Tell me what you want.”

“Touch me. Please, Chanyeol.”

The red-head grew fond at that. He reached up and took hold of Baekhyun’s hands, brought them to his lips, and kissed his knuckles.

“I’ll take care of you,” he murmured.

~

They somehow made it to dinner before 6pm. The pair decided to not go to a fancy restaurant for their last night, but rather a cosy and boisterous pub. They were wearing all of their snow gear- as were most of the other patrons- and had dragged their snowboards from the Ritz to the little village close by. Chanyeol was very pleased to see how good of a mood that Baekhyun was in. He remembered how downtrodden the dark-haired seemed earlier that day when he realized it was their last full day of vacation. Tomorrow, they would be traveling back home, back to reality, back to their responsibilities. Chanyeol didn’t want to think about it too much.

He found himself staring at Baekhyun for most of their dinner, as if he would forget his face. The table they sat at was small, but Chanyeol still felt too far away. He reached out and placed his hand on top of Baekhyun’s, effectively grabbing his attention.

“I’m happy to be here with you, Baekhyun,” Chanyeol said. “You’ve really made this vacation worthwhile.”

“Aw, Chanyeol, thank you for bringing me along,” The dark-haired laced their fingers together. “I’ve also had an amazing time, and I’m so glad we figured all this out… between us. I’m so relieved. It just feels so easy with you. Like nothing has changed, but also everything will. We’ll take it one day at a time.”

“Tell me, then. What was your favourite part of this trip? Besides... _that,_ ” Chanyeol added after seeing a very sly grin split Baekhyun’s face. He rested his head on his other hand as Baekhyun spoke, content with observing the dark-haired, noticing the way he made lots of hand motions, different facial expressions, and the way his voice changed as he chattered on. _You’re such a fool in love…_ the voice in his head chimed in. The red-head didn’t seem to notice, but smiled on.

They were out on the mountain for just over two hours, enjoying the vacancy of the slopes and the quiet of the night. Chanyeol and Baekhyun sat close on the ski lifts, the dark-haired tucked comfortably under the other’s arm. And if they shared a quick kiss, cold lips brushing for only a moment, only they would know. And if Chanyeol would send a quiet “I love you” to Baekhyun, it would be lost in the wisps of foggy breath that escaped his mouth. And if Baekhyun would say the same in return, Chanyeol would know.

The pair ended their night out and hurried inside, miraculously remembering to bring up all of their snow and boarding gear. As quickly as they could, they changed into pajamas and cuddled up together under the many layers of blankets. Chanyeol was dreading their day of travel that would consume all of tomorrow. But that was tomorrow. And Chanyeol was here. And Baekhyun was right next to him. And that was real. That was the present. So he wrapped his arms around the dark-haired and pulled him close and squeezed him tight. And Baekhyun whispered little nothings into the skin of his neck while his fingers danced along Chanyeol’s waist.

“Love you, Baek.”

“Love you more.”

“Impossible. I said it first.”

“Okay. Love you too, Chanyeol.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hoping that ill finish this before thanksgiving lol pray for me


	7. Day VII: An Epilogue

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello it is the end and i have no excuse for the delay  
> as u can see i did not finish this before thxgiving but i did finish it before xmas so thats a win in my book  
> sorry  
> but now it's finished!! yay!
> 
> follow me!!  
> tumblr: freak-ofthe-nation  
> twt: @ayeowa

Chanyeol decided that he absolutely hated alarm clocks. He wanted badly to smash the snooze button, but he also didn’t want to move, because then that would confirm his consciousness. He wanted very much to fall asleep again.

“Chanyeol, turn it off. I wanna g’back t’bed.” Baekhyun mumbled. His face was pressed into the crook of Chanyeol’s neck.

“We gotta get up soon, Baek,” The red-head spoke to the ceiling. He pat Baekhyun’s arm that was thrown over his torso. “Got a lot of traveling today. Gotta get to the airport, get through security… gotta fly back home…”

Baekhyun hummed his response. “I don’t wanna go back home.” He snaked his arm tighter around Chanyeol’s waist. “Wanna stay here with you forever. Don’t wanna go back.”

Chanyeol let out a great sigh. “I know. But we gotta.”

Baekhyun groaned. “Five more minutes,” He bargained.

“Fine,” Chanyeol agreed. “But I’m turning on the table lamp.”

Another groan.

Chanyeol didn’t want to go back either.

[ Track 22 ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHVKlgfiYmU)

When the five minutes were up, Chanyeol had to pull the bed sheets to the foot of the bed in order to coax Baekhyun out. He was very glad that they had done most of their packing the day before, because there was still a lot to get together, and not enough time to think it all through. The pair brushed their teeth and showered together to save time, and then were both moving in between both rooms to make sure neither were forgetting anything. They called up a bellboy to help bring down all of their luggage and boarding gear. Baekhyun waited at the open door while Chanyeol took one last sweep of the hotel room. He paused at the beds, mind flashing of all the memories they contained. The corners of his mouth turned upwards.

He went to exit, taking one last look into the room, feeling a little sad to leave all the goodness behind. But then he looked at Baekhyun beside him, and the melancholy was replaced with delight. He leaned down and pressed a chaste kiss to Baekhyun’s lips, but Baekhyun was ready as he held onto the opened zipper of Chanyeol’s hoodie. He deepened the kiss, cocking his head to the side so that his nose touched the other’s cheek. He slid his tongue into Chanyeol’s mouth, mingling with Chanyeol’s tongue, before breaking the kiss. They both breathed heavily, a promise for more later on hanging between them.

They still had some time before they needed to check out of the hotel, so they sat down for breakfast. Baekhyun chose a small table next to a tall window. Outside, snow was falling softly. The sun had only recently broke over the mountaintops, shedding golden-white light all around. Chanyeol had to roll his eyes at how cliché it all was.

The red-head poured a sugar packet into his coffee as he spoke: “So our flight is at 12:45pm, but we gotta get to the airport, you know, and that’s a fair drive. And then we gotta deal with all the shit at the airport, but it’s not really holiday season, so there shouldn’t be any big hold-ups. The car’s already packed, so I think if we leave in a half hour, we would make it with plenty of time to spare.”

Baekhyun hummed into his own coffee, stretching his legs under the table to entwine them with Chanyeol’s legs. “Gotta love those Ritz Carlton perks, eh?” The dark-haired joked.

“Yeah, it’s been luxurious. I’m gonna miss it. Even those fancy little washcloths with the deer antlers stitched into ‘em,” Chanyeol agreed.

“Well, lucky for you, I may or may not have thrown a few into my suitcase during our last-minute packing hurricane after waking up earlier.”

“You didn’t.”

“I  _ may _ have. Looks like you’ll have to come to my place and help me  _ unpack _ to check it out.”

The pair shared a look and laughed as the wait-staff brought their food. They ate quickly, both of them eager to have their last meal in the Ritz. Baekhyun stared at Chanyeol from across the table, his head resting in his hand with his elbow propped on the table. Such bad manners for such a nice place. The dark-haired reached out across the table, palm up, asking for Chanyeol’s hand. He laced their fingers together tightly, and Chanyeol felt a rush of joy and a surge of energy, just from that simple touch.

“I love you, Chanyeol. And I’m ready to love you for a long long time.”

They shared a smile.

It was all gonna work out.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> well that's that and honestly im only dissatisfied with how long it took me to finish this. but i did it!! i actually finished something creative!!!!!  
> im currently working on 3-4 fics right now because i have no impulse control, so expect more in the future if you like my stuff!


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